Aileen O'Heidin and the Sword of Godric Gryffindor
by XxKonspiracyxX
Summary: It's the age of peace - what're the odds that another Grindlewald or Voldemort might rise to power?
1. The Carnie & the Hothead

"You're a wizard."

The words echoed throughout the dingy, stone building, interrupted by no other sounds, as Aileen, her mother, and her father were the only people in the room. The sounds of her father's carnival, loud as they were, were far enough away from their one-room home that they didn't interfere with their family conversation. The iron dishes hanging over the sink didn't waver an inch, nor did the curtains, or the wind just outside of every window. Nothing stirred in their cozy, congested home; Aileen stood leaning on the back of the couch, cross armed and facing her father, who was just opposite her, presenting the very same posture, one she had undoubtedly inherited from him; folded arms, unyielding stare, and a faint movement of the mouth from where his upper teeth began to gnaw on his lower lip. Unlike Aileen, who usually wore whatever hand-me-down rags her parents would give her with her dark blue cloak thrown over it, her father was dressed almost presentably, despite him being a carnie; his black suit was pinstriped with thin silver lines up and down his torso and arms, his tie and undershirt as dark as the rest of his attire, his narrow face expressionless as he gazed at his daughter, his thin, light brown hairs slicking backwards, revealing the slightest hint of a receding hairline in the shape of a V, which, on anyone else, wouldn't look half as stylish.

Aileen ruffled her messy ginger hair, groaning and tossing her Hogwarts letter onto the wool blankets atop the couch cushions.

"I'm a wizard. You're a wizard. Your mother's a particularly gifted witch, too. How's it a surprise to you?" her father asked. "We may not look it, but we've been a pureblood family for generations. It oughta' be expected that you'd get invited to Hogwarts, given the family history."

Aileen stifled a sigh. Her father yammered in that thick accent of his, and it irritated her more than ever; his accent was probably the only one in all of Ireland that was thicker than her own. Right now, as he tried to persuade her of her luckiness at being invited to Hogwarts, everything about that voice of his was bothering her more and more.

"I still don't see why I have to go to school for magic," Aileen replied. "I know magic. You've been teaching me all my life. Mum, are you on his side, or what?"

Her eyes shot over to the kitchen, where her mother - a beautiful, curvy woman with waves of auburn hair crawling down her shoulders - was standing with her back against the wall, watching as her husband and daughter continued to argue with no real resolve coming about.

"I think," her mother began hesitantly, "that you would benefit from getting an education. Especially in a place like Hogwarts. It's as safe as God's Heaven, nowadays. And, it's full of experienced teachers, and full of such incredible history... you can't even imagine. Your cousin Seamus graduated from Hogwarts, and look how well he's doing for himself."

Aileen, annoyed at her parents both teaming up against her, groaned and turned away.

"Oh, you know magic, do you?" her father said. "You don't even have a wand yet. You don't know anywhere near enough. Not yet. Just because you can turn a few tricks with the flick of your wrist," he spun his hand, making a ball of fire appear in his palm, "doesn't mean that you're ready for the real world. Preforming circus tricks isn't what you oughta base your standards on."

"That's what _you_ do," Aileen quipped in response. "What's wrong with circus tricks?"

"Nothing's wrong with it. Not for me, anyway," her father told her. "It was a way to survive - because I didn't have the luxury of getting an education. This is how I learned to use magic, to make a few pretty tricks for the muggles and make them laugh and clap. It's not a career, sweety. It's a method of survival. You can do better than me, and you damn well have the means to. There's no reason in the world why you shouldn't take the opportunity."

He snapped his fingers shut, making the magical flame that had appeared vanish as quickly as it had manifested.

Aileen frowned, noticeably angry. In her eleven years, she'd quite enjoyed living in the shadow of the O'Heidin Carnival, sneaking off and watching the attractions by her lonesome whenever she wasn't tasked with tending to her parents' garden. Usually, she'd slip away and indulge in her laziness whenever she could, often skipping her chores and dodging many of her responsibilities. The luxury of living as a carnie child wouldn't be bestowed upon her if she were to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry; going to a live-in school and being given a constant flow of schoolwork would most assuredly take away her careless way of life. That wasn't an idea that she was willing to entertain.

Her father, however, wasn't in the mood to take 'no' for an answer.

"Don't pout at me, hothead," he stated. "You should be grateful that you got that letter. You shouldn't be acting like a spoiled brat about it."

"Samuel," her mother interjected. "Don't."

"Melody, hush," her father, Samuel, replied.

Melody O'Heidin frowned at her husband.

"Ross Connelly and his boy are coming to pick you up in a few days, understand?" Samuel unfolded his arms and planted his hands on his hips, taking a step forward and raising his eyebrows as he stared into Aileen's face. "Do you understand, missy? Ross and little Maxwell are gonna take your pouty hide to Diagon Alley, so you can get everything you need for the school year. I've got a bit of money saved up. You should have enough for all your books. Look - your letter came with a list of class requirements. Keep that on you when you leave, aye?"

"Do I have to go to school?" Aileen moped. "I really don't care about having a career."

"You're eleven years old," Samuel responded. "You don't get to make that decision for yourself. Not yet."

"Yes, it's Maxwell's first year as well," Melody said. "You two are starting school together. Aren't you looking forward to going to school with your friend?"

Aileen didn't answer her mother. Maxwell was the son of a wealthy Scottish Auror, a wizard by the name of Ross. Ross Connelly was one of the very few elite Aurors who resided in Scotland, and whenever he would travel across Europe in the pursuit of wizardly evildoers, he would occasionally drop his son off at the O'Heidin Carnival. Ross and Samuel were well acquainted with one another, so, Ross never minded to let Samuel babysit his son. Maxwell Connelly had been left in the O'Heidin family's care many times in the past, and Maxwell himself tended to stick to Aileen's side whenever he was around. Samuel and Melody were usually busy, leaving Aileen the only person available to look after Maxwell during his visits. Unlike Aileen, Maxwell was an outspoken, fun loving individual, and he seemed to like Aileen's company, but she wasn't sure if she would call him a friend. After all, she never went out of her way to spend time with him; he was simply there, latching onto her and following her around whenever his father would leave for a dangerous job. His mother was perfectly capable of looking after him, but she had a job of her own, and Maxwell very much enjoyed his visits to the carnival. It didn't matter that Maxwell was expected to attend Hogwarts, just as she was. If Aileen had it her way, she'd stay isolated forever, hiding in the carnival's crowds and never being bothered with work, or rules, or people.

"You will be going to school, and I don't want to hear another word about it. Are we clear?" Samuel said straightly, pointing a finger at Aileen. "Go and dig around in the cellar. You should find a trunk to use. You drag it inside, you pack it full of clothes, and you get your gear together, because you're gonna be leaving for school the day after tomorrow. Understand?"

"Mhm," Aileen mumbled halfheartedly.

"It'll be fun, sweetheart," Melody told her. "Much more fun than staying cooped up in here all the time."

Aileen opened the thick wooden door, stepping outside and leaving the presence of her parents. Their home sat on the top of a hill, surrounded by miles of trees and fields, overlooking the colorful tents and structures of the O'Heidin Carnival. A slender dirt road slithered around the home, down the hill, and towards the carnival. It was the path that her father would walk every morning in order to take survey of everything in his carnival, to make sure that everything was as it should have been, that everyone was doing their job and no one was causing any trouble. Samuel O'Heidin wasn't just a carnie; he was the owner of the entire carnival. Intelligent and experienced, Samuel always had the answer to every carnie's questions, though he was most well-known for his own show, the great manipulation of elements. He was often nicknamed the Pyro, as he was especially talented when handling fire. Melody had always expressed to Aileen how special her father was for having this ability; it took an extraordinary level of strength and practice to use magic without a wand, and it was a rare ability that Samuel was quite proficient in.

The carnival was where Samuel spent most of his time, but on the other side of the house - the side opposite of the dirt path - was the garden, where her mother would tend to the crops on a regular basis. Aileen looked from the garden to the carnival, then to the wooded area north of their home, where a square cement structure stuck out of the ground, two large doors on its top which led to the family cellar.

Before now, she had never been expected to leave home. She'd never even been to an ordinary muggle city before, and she had never attended a school, either. Her mother had homeschooled her, taught her to read, and write, and basic mathematics, and such. She'd never left the carnival before. How could they suddenly expect her to move to another country and live in a school that was entirely unfamiliar to her?

Down the hill, music echoed from the tents, and crowds of muggles moved around like ants, carrying stuffed animals, cotton candy, popcorn, drinks, and other things. The carnival was busy, as to be expected at the end of the summer. Soon, autumn would fall, and this would be the first year that Aileen wouldn't be around to see the beautiful leaves fall over her father's land.

"Why do I have to leave...?" Aileen murmured, taking one last glance of the carnival from above before heading towards the cellar.

As she pulled the cellar doors open, her mother's stories of Hogwarts appeared in her mind. Melody had told her of the history of Hogwarts, focusing mostly on its most recent events, like the War of Hogwarts that took place nineteen years ago against the legendary Lord Voldemort and his army of magical creatures and death eaters. The Dark Lord was finally vanquished, and in the years following this amazing accomplishment, Hogwarts was restored to its former glory, with slight changes and improvements added to the magnificent school. This was only what Aileen had heard, of course. Apart from what her mother had told her, she hardly knew anything about the place.

In all honestly, Hogwarts sounded like a wonderful place to experience and explore, with classes that taught all forms of magic, and with Quidditch matches to look forward to every season, not to mention the occasional treat of the Triwizard Tournament or field trips to places like Hogsmeade. Part of her felt a spark of excitement at the thought of it. Perhaps the only reason that she was so strongly defying her parents' wishes was because they were so adamantly ordering her to attend the school. It might have been something she would enjoy, but she did not like being bossed around, not even by her mother and father.

The inside of the ancient, dusty cellar was packed with old pieces of furniture from decades ago, as well as small boxes of her parents' belongings. Against the wall sat a large, rectangular trunk. Aileen grasped the trunk by the handle and dragged it up the stone stairs, slinging it onto the grass outside and shutting the cellar doors behind her. When she pulled the trunk into the house, her father was no longer inside, but her mother stepped out of the kitchen, holding a round, silver object cupped in her hands. Melody approached her daughter and held the silver necklace over her head, placing the locket around Aileen's neck.

"Keep this with you, sweetheart," Melody said kindly, pressing the tiny button on the side of the locket. It popped open, revealing a quarter sized family portrait of both of her parents, as well as an eight year old Aileen.

"Okay," Aileen replied.

Melody scooped Aileen into a close, warm hug.

Aileen returned the embrace.

Then, she slid the trunk over to her corner of the building, propping it against her bed and rifling through her pile of clothing. Aileen didn't have many belongings. She suspected that she might have been able to pack everything she owned into this trunk.

Once she was finished stuffing the trunk in a sloppy and unorganized manner, Aileen plopped onto her bed and drifted into a long, bored nap. She didn't awaken until six in the morning, and she spent her last full day at home visiting each and every attraction, finishing by standing in the crowd in front of the largest stage in the carnival, the one that belonged to her father. Samuel spawned a series of fireballs, tossing them about and dancing between the flames as his show carried on, strings of fire following each of his fingertips as he moved with his posse of female dancers, making him appear as elegant as he was powerful. None of the muggles were aware of the magic in the show; most of them would think that it was a trick, preformed with matches or mirrors. None of them knew that this magic trick was, indeed, a show preformed with wizardry.

Aileen wondered how many of these amazing tricks she would learn at Hogwarts.

* * *

On the day of Ross and Maxwell's arrival to her home, Aileen was forced to crawl out of bed far too early. A loud, earsplitting crack penetrated the air, followed by a bombardment of fast, hard knocks slamming into the door. It was about five am when this happened, and it succeeded in waking Samuel, Melody, and Aileen all at once.

Samuel was the first to reach the door. When he slung it open, he glared irritably into Ross Connelly's face, which hovered about a foot and a half over his own. Ross was a man of enormous stature, with a wide smile spread across his face and a dark beard slithering along each side of his jaw. His son, Maxwell, was standing tiredly by his father's side, rubbing his eyes and yawning just as Aileen was.

"You told me to come early, didn't 'cha?" Ross laughed.

Samuel blinked. "Aye, I did, but I didn't mean before sunrise."

"Is your little one ready?" Ross asked, peeking around Samuel's shoulder and seeing Aileen, sitting on her bed and half awake.

"Give her a moment to wake up," Samuel told him. "I've gotta grab her money, give me a second..."

Samuel went to the cabinet beside the sink and began searching through the books, jars, and artifacts inside.

"You sure you don't want me to pitch in?" Ross suggested. "I've got plenty of Galleons saved up."

"I've got my own." Samuel pulled a tiny velvet sack of coins out from behind the majority of the cabinet's contents. "Been saving them for just this occasion."

Samuel crossed the house and handed the bag to Aileen.

"Those are all my savings from this last year. I had the muggle currency converted," he told her. "It ain't a lot, but it should get you everything you need for school, and you'll probably have a few Sickles left over. Hold onto them. You might need them throughout the year."

"Thanks," Aileen said.

"C'mon." Samuel pulled her to her feet, and he and Melody took turns hugging her before she grabbed her trunk and headed for the door.

"Aileen," Maxwell smiled, his round, boyish face imprinted with dimples and his scraggly brown hair dangling partially over his emerald eyes. "It's good to see you."

Aileen simply nodded at him, still feeling too tired to talk. It had been nearly a year since Ross and Maxwell had visited the carnival, but to Aileen, it felt like hardly any time had gone by. It seemed like only yesterday when Ross was trailing behind Maxwell and Aileen as Maxwell practically dragged her to the Halloween-themed haunted house attraction.

"We love you, sweetheart," Melody said, wearing a sad smile.

"Don't get in too much trouble, hothead," Samuel added.

Aileen turned to face them, and when she did, she didn't only focus on their faces, but also the interior of her home - the two beds, the overflowing clothes hamper, the pictures and paintings along the wall, some of them featuring family photos and others portraying beautiful scenery of mountains or ocean sides. The spoons, pans, and knives hanging from the nails above the kitchen sink were barely moving as the wind from the window grazed over them, and the home was lit only by what few candles were placed on the counters and headboards. It was a comfortable, quaint little home, and for the first time ever, she was about to leave it for almost a whole year.

"Bye, Mr. and Mrs. O'Heidin," Maxwell said, waving to both of Aileen's parents.

"Seeya later, kiddo. You two look after each other, aye?" Samuel replied.

Aileen stood on Ross'ss other side, and he wrapped both of his meaty hands around each of the children's arms.

"Hold onto your trunk." Samuel instructed. "And brace yourself."

"For what?" Aileen wondered, though less than a second later, her question would be answered.

 _Crack._

In a flash, Ross, Maxwell, and Aileen disappeared from the doorway of the house.

It was as if the entire world had been ripped apart and reconstructed in a millisecond before Aileen's eyes; her stomach jolted, her head spinning as a headache swept over her out of seemingly nowhere. In front of her were a few witches and wizards, not as many as would be visible during the middle of the day, heading up and down Diagon Alley, carrying bags, dressed in robes of varying colors and designs, and many of them sporting pointy hats. Down this narrow street were numerous shops of many sizes and shapes, and Aileen might have marveled at the sight of it if she wasn't fighting down the urge to vomit.

"What just happened?" Aileen asked Ross. "Where are we?"

"London," Ross told her with a smirk.

Aileen squinted up at him. "London? Seriously? How did we end up in London so fast?"

"Apparation, o'course," Ross answered. "That's a little trick you'll learn once you're out of school. Just relax a second, get your bearings, and then we'll start our shopping."

Maxwell's smile broadened into an ear-to-ear grin as he observed Diagon Alley.

Aileen, as usual, was trying to mask over her feelings. She tried not to appear as sick as she felt, and she hid the fact that she was just as captivated by Diagon Alley as Maxwell, perhaps even more so.

It certainly wouldn't be the most exciting thing to happen to the young wizards today.


	2. Ollivander's Observation

Marvelous as the alley was, it would be three times more astounding when the sun would rise.

As the early morning bled into a beautiful sunrise, Ross led Maxwell and Aileen down the cobblestone street. The crowd thickened ever so slowly, until the weak morning sunlight began to creep out from behind Diagon Alley's tallest buildings, casting a gorgeous glare on the wizards and witches down below.

Ross took the two children into a gray, run-down building that smelled of mildew, where a short, balding waiter served the three of them a breakfast of partially burnt scrambled eggs with a side of pumpkin juice. Aileen ate rather quickly, wanting to get out of the dark, smelly diner. Once they emerged from the building, the sun had risen, the the rush of before-school shopping had started.

"Do they have a pet store?" Maxwell asked excitedly, his Scottish voice just the slightest bit sharper than what Aileen was accustomed to hearing. "Dad! I want to pick my pet first!"

"You already have a pet, son. Did you forget about Julie?" Ross replied.

"A pet?" Aileen said. "They let you take pets to the school?"

"Oh, aye. Most take an owl or a cat, or something small that they can keep in a cage," Ross told her. "You can take whatever you want, usually, so long as you can take care of it."

"Let's look at the animals!" Maxwell prompted Aileen, smacking her lightly on the arm. "Come on, animals first!"

"Son, you don't think you ought to get your books first? Why don't you save the fun things for the end of the shopping?" Ross questioned, though his son wasn't listening to him. Maxwell was smiling at Aileen, waiting for her answer.

"Y-yeah, sure. We can do that," Aileen said passively. "It doesn't matter to me."

Maxwell grabbed her by the arm and started into the crowd. It was difficult for Aileen to maneuver around the hips and waists of all the surrounding adults, all the while yanking along her trunk with one hand and letting Maxwell pull her by the other. Ross kept both of them within his sights as they passed shop after shop, until Maxwell halted to a stop in front of the only store that was surrounded by small cages.

The towering buildings and robed strangers sank into her mind more and more as they rushed past her vision. Just before hurtling to a stop in front of the pet store, Aileen wondered how she had ended up here, so very far from home, in the heart of a secret sect of London and surrounded by witches and wizards. Back home in her father's secluded carnival, she and her parents were the only wizards for miles, and they were always forced to keep their abilities secret - with the exception of Samuel's fire performances, of course. Aileen never thought that a place like this could exist, a place where wizards walked around openly, buying and selling magical items and preparing for their wizardly jobs or to get their education from a magical school.

"Amazing," Aileen uttered to herself as she and Maxwell observed the animals.

Above their heads was a pair of bats, hanging upside down from a wooden stick and climbing over each other in order to straighten themselves upright. Many of the cages were filled with owls of all shapes and sizes, though a select few of them contained no birds of any kind; one of them held a large white mouse, two of them held a couple of spotted rabbits, and one of them contained a ball python, which was curled into a scaly ball.

Maxwell seemed to be distracted by the owls, but Aileen's attention fell on the snake. They weren't the only two children who were huddled around the pets; at least three other families were standing nearby, and another boy was watching the caged snake with the same intrigue as Aileen. It was a boy who was about half a head taller than her, dressed in brand new, dark green robes, with his bleach blonde hair slicked back over his head and behind his ears. His grayish-silver eyes didn't break away from the snake until he noticed that Aileen was also interested in it.

"It's the only snake here, and I was here first," the blonde boy snarked at her. "It's mine."

Aileen narrowed her eyes at him.

"You don't look like you could afford him, anyway," the blonde added with a sneer.

"I can afford him!" Aileen exclaimed.

"I doubt it," he responded.

"Scorpius, shush," the boy's father said, patting him on the shoulder. "Just pick something. Don't fuss."

The boy named Scorpius glared at Aileen for a moment before returning his attention to the animal cages. Maxwell was watching the birds, unaware of the bickering that had happened feet away from him.

The python pressed its snout against the tiny metal bars of the cage, its shiny black eyes seeming to focus on Aileen.

Aileen watched him.

" _You look lonely_ ," she said to the snake. " _Are you lonely here_?"

The snake raised its head a bit, hovering a little taller than it was before, as if responding to what Aileen had asked. Scorpius turned to her, looking slightly shocked.

" _Yes_ ," The snake said, making Aileen's eyes widen. " _So many people, but nobody stays. Everyone leaves_."

" _I can get you out of here. If you come with me, I'll let you out of your cage whenever you want. You won't be locked up all the time_ ," Aileen told the creature. " _Do you want to come with me to school_?"

Its forked tongue flickered in between the metal bars. The snake's triangular head bobbed in a way that made it look like it was nodding.

Scorpius's father put a hand on his back and guided him away from Aileen. "Stay away from her," he whispered to his son as they both marched off.

Aileen didn't notice. Her focus stayed on the snake, and Maxwell turned his head, finally remembering that she was beside him.

"You can talk to snakes?" he asked her.

"I guess so," Aileen replied. "Apparently, snakes can talk to me, too."

"He can?" Maxwell said wonderingly, examining the snake. "I didn't hear anything."

"He was talking to me, just now. You didn't hear it?" Aileen told him, and just when Maxwell opened his mouth to reply, a skinny, middle-aged woman leaned out of the shop's doorway. She wore a sky blue robe and a matching witch's hat.

"What's peaked your interest, sweetheart?" the woman asked Aileen. "The snake?"

Aileen nodded.

"It's a Sickle and three Knuts," the woman informed.

Aileen dug out a silver coin and three copper coins from her father's money bag, placing the currency in the woman's palm and taking the caged snake for herself. With a trunk to pull and a cage to carry, her hands would be full all day, and she had hardly even started her shopping, but it didn't matter to her. She was simply happy at being able to buy the snake, and she wished that the snobby blonde kid was still around, so that she could smirk at him in a smug, victorious way.

Ross remained just behind Aileen and Maxwell as they moved through the crowd again. Ross instructed them to go into the bookstore, even though neither of them wanted to. It took about an hour and a half for the children to sort through the assortments of dusty books and to find all of the textbooks on their lists of class requirements. Once they were finished retrieving their books, Ross managed to stuff all of them into Aileen's trunk for easy transport while they continued their shopping. Then, they squeezed through the crowd again, this time with Ross taking the lead. He escorted the children to Ollivander's, and the wand shop was surprisingly empty. The both of them began to slide the long, rectangular boxes off the shelves and studied the wands inside.

"Oy, don't play around with those things," Ross told the kids. "You could put someone's eye out."

"I know how to handle a wand, Dad!" Maxwell replied.

"Do you, now," Ross chuckled. "You're a grown man now, huh?"

"Yup," Maxwell confirmed, opening the boxes, glimpsing at the wands, and putting them away almost absentmindedly.

Aileen held her snake's cage up to the shelf.

" _Which one should I try_?" she asked it.

Ross frowned at her. "Don't talk to the snake."

"Hm?" Aileen mumbled. "Why not?"

"Just don't talk to it, not in public," Ross ordered. "You'll draw some unwanted attention if people hear you speaking Parseltongue."

"Parsel-what?" Aileen asked.

"Snake language," Ross said. "Parseltongue has a bad reputation among the wizard community. Try not to broadcast that ability. Keep it hush-hush, if you can."

Aileen shrugged nonchalantly. When she turned to examine more of the wands, two adults emerged from behind the counter. It was a young man, who looked like the Ollivander that had sold Harry Potter's wand to him many years ago, but half the age. The other was a woman, with wavy blonde hair and a flashy, tacky dress with golden lace and yellow designs. The woman approached Maxwell, kindly offering to help him find a suitable wand, and the man went to Aileen.

"Looking for a wand, eh?" Ollivander said.

"Aye," Aileen replied. "What kind should I get? Which kind is the best?"

"The best? Well, that depends on what kind of person you are," Ollivander said. "Some wands work better for certain kinds of people than they do for others. Tell me... what do you want to be when you grow up?"

"Why're you asking me that?" Aileen said.

"Because, knowing your ambitions might help me to find you a fitting wand," Ollivander answered.

Aileen pondered on this. As she told her father, she didn't care much for a career, but as far as life ambitions? The sky was the limit. She had always wanted to demonstrate the abilities that her father was so very skilled with, the raw power of elemental manipulation. Aileen wasn't sure what she wanted to do with her life, but she was certain that, whatever she did, she wanted to be the very best at it, to be the strongest, and the smartest, and the most successful.

"I want... to be strong," Aileen told him. "I want to be strong, and... extraordinary. I want to be extraordinary."

Ollivander had the hint of a smile on his face, but it started to fade after hearing this.

"Interesting," he said. "Do you want to help people, or do you want to do something more... combative?"

Aileen looked down at her old boots. "I don't know. I just want to be strong. I want to do something... big. Something amazing."

"I see," Ollivander said, taking one of the wands - a very smooth, reddish one - from its box and handing it to her. "This is a Red Oak wand, one of the rarer ones. It's very good for dueling, for people with quick reactions and powerful offensive abilities."

Aileen's hand tightened, but not of her own accord. It felt as if the wand was resisting her, trying to push itself out of her hand. She gave it a slight wave, but nothing happened.

"No? Perhaps this one, then." Ollivander gave her another wand. She tried to wave it again, and once more, nothing happened.

Ollivander continued pulling out the wands he thought might be suitable for her, but none of them gave her any results. After about twenty attempts, Ollivander sighed and rubbed his temples.

Aileen went over to Ross, placing her caged snake near his feet and beside her trunk. She wondered why none of the wands were working for her, why all of them felt like they were refusing to cooperate with her. Was it simply by coincidence? Was it just taking a little too long for her to find the right match? Or, was it perhaps because she was weaker than she thought? Maybe she wasn't half as gifted as her father was. Still, whenever she was by herself back home, she would practice making fire using only her hands, and even though she was only capable of creating a flame the size of a lit candle wick, she still figured that she ought to be strong enough to use a wand. After all, it took a lot of concentration to manifest magic without a wand; shouldn't she be able to do it with a wand that much more easily?

Maxwell was occupied with the blonde woman in another aisle, and she was very politely explaining to him the differences between the different wand types. Ollivander walked past them, slowly climbed up his rickety metal ladder, and took a box from the very highest shelf in the room. He then climbed down and brought the box over to Aileen, carefully removing the wand from it.

"Every wand, every single one, is one of a kind, none with the same ideals as the last," Ollivander told her in a profound whisper. "But, this one... this one is a one of a kind among all crafts and types. This wand was fashioned from Sycamore wood. The Sycamore wand is known for its adventurous personality. It loves to be challenged with power and new experiences, and it makes for a very loyal servant, if treated properly. This wand will be your best friend in life, if you allow it to be. You must never allow the Sycamore wand to become bored. It will lose its strength if it falls into any dreadfully dull routines. But, you... I don't think you'll have to worry about that. You see, I make a living reading people, and I can tell that your greatest journey will be in search of yourself. You will explore and experience all sorts of things in order to figure out who you are, and that's just the kind of life that the Sycamore wand thrives in. But... the Sycamore wood isn't what makes this wand so very special."

Ollivander leaned closer to her, so close that Aileen was able to smell the hint of morning coffee on his breath. Ross was doing well to hide it, but he was eavesdropping on their conversation rather intently.

"The three most commonly used wand cores are phoenix feathers, dragon heartstrings, and unicorn hair. There are others of course, but none that are particularly memorable above the basic three. Can you guess what core resides in this wand?" Ollivander asked her, holding the wand up in front of her eyes. It was a beautiful, light vanilla color, with a decorative carving of a thorn vine weaving up the wand all the way from the back of the handle. The false thorn vine extended from the back of the handle, over the grip, and wrapped around the wand in a manner most elegant. The bridge between the handle's rear and the main shaft served as somewhat of a hand guard, making the wand look almost like a tiny sword.

"What kind?" Aileen said.

"It's dragon heartstring," Ollivander replied, "but it's not the heartstring of any common dragon that's bred in Japan, or China, or Romania. The core of this Sycamore wand carries the heartstring of a single, ancient dragon... one thought to be extinct in this day and age. Once, there were two of these great dragons that roamed the earth. One of them was killed hundreds and hundreds of years ago, and its body was salvaged by our wizardly ancestors, its heart used to craft a small supply of the most powerful wands ever created. This... is one of those wands. It's much older than it looks. Handle it with care."

He extended his arm, and Aileen carefully grasped the handle of the Sycamore wand. At once, her palm felt warm to the touch, as if she was feeling the wand's body heat. It felt almost like the wand was a living creature.

"This wand has been in my family's possession for generations. We've never found a suitable match for it," Ollivander said. "That wand contains the heartstring of the great Leviathan."

"Leviathan?" Aileen echoed.

"The stuff of legend," Ollivander told her. "There were only two of its kind, and one of them died long ago. This wand carries its legendary power, the breath of fire, and the power of the ocean's wrath. The Leviathan were rumored to breath fire, as many dragons do, but it also had the power to control the ocean water. The Leviathan lived in the ocean, you see. The water was its greatest asset, and its fire was its fiercest offense. You might call the Leviathan an elemental God, what with its influence over fire and water."

Aileen's fingers tightened around the wand's handle. The Sycamore didn't feel to be resisting her like all the other wands had. In fact, it felt like an extension of her arm, like it wanted to be held by her. All her life, Aileen wanted to mimic her father's outstanding abilities, to manipulate fire just the way he did. If the Leviathan was adept at elemental manipulation, then maybe...

"Go on," Ollivander urged. "Give it a try."

Ollivander backed away. Aileen raised the wand, pointing at the open space in the center of the shop, not in any person's general direction. With a deep breath, she gave the wand a small wave - then, something miraculous happened. From her wrist erupted a blast of fire; the wand served as a conductor for the energy, and the fire exploded out of the wand, blazing across the store and almost endangering the bookshelf just adjacent from her.

Ross raised his eyebrows at the blast of fire. Maxwell's head poked out curiously from behind one of the aisles, and Ollivander's eyes widened.

Aileen might have dropped the wand out of sheer shock, but somehow, she managed to keep hold of it. After a few seconds of amazement, she yanked the wand to the side, severing the line of fire and making the flames dissipate into the air.

There was a brief moment of silence.

Ollivander blinked several times, as if trying to process what he'd just seen. Aileen did much the same.

"Curious," he muttered. "I've seen astounding power from first years before. When young eleven-year-olds come into my shop, and they find their matching wands... I've seen them levitate. I've seen them glow, as if the sun is shining on them. I've seen them preform spells that they ought not know yet. I've seen first years do a lot of unique things when they find their suited wands. But... this is the first time that I've ever seen a display like that."

"What... what does it mean?" Aileen asked, trying not to sound shaken.

"Well," Ollivander said, tilting his head thoughtfully. "The wand of Leviathan has never reacted to anyone before now, so... I'd say, it means that I've finally found the wand's match."

"Really?" Aileen said. "Me? Are you sure?"

"Young lady, what is your name?" Ollivander questioned, kneeling in front of her and swiping some of his bushy brown hair aside.

"Aileen," she replied.

"Aileen," Ollivander said, "none of the other wands want to work with you. The wand of Leviathan - one of the rarest wands in the entire world - is responding to you, when none other will. What does that tell you?"

Aileen thought about it.

"I... don't really know," she concluded. "I don't know what it means. I mean, you're making it sound like the wands are choosing not to work, but they can't be..."

"They can, and they are," Ollivander said mysteriously. "None of the wands want to work with you because you are destined for the wand of Leviathan."

"What do you mean, destined?" Aileen wondered, not understanding the wand selection process at all. "I thought that it was up to me to pick the wand I wanted. Doesn't everyone get to pick their own wand? Whatever kind they want? That's what my dad told me. My dad said that everyone picks their own wand whenever they turn eleven."

"The wand chooses the wizard, young lady," Ollivander told her, standing fully upright again. "And the wand of Leviathan has clearly chosen you."

Maxwell had returned to rummaging through the wands alongside Ollivander's wife, and Ross was watching Aileen intensely, though she hadn't noticed. Her focus was on Ollivander's eyes, which were resting on her in a peculiar way that made her somewhat uncomfortable. Nevertheless, Aileen was finding it difficult to hide her rising excitement at being matched with an exceptionally powerful wand, and she tried not to let her imagination run wild with ideas of how to use it...

"Just remember," Ollivander said, his voice darkening slightly. "My father sold hundreds of wands in this shop for decades, most of them to the most ordinary of first years... but, he sold one wand to a child who carried a similar, rare ambition, and that child grew to be the most evil man that wizard kind has ever known. He-who-must-not-be-named bought his wand here, in this very store, with ambitions as imaginary as yours are. You-know-who started out as nothing more than you are now. Always remember; great power requires great responsibility. Never let those ambitions of yours spiral into an uncontrollable reality... the way his did."

Aileen gulped. Something about Ollivander's lectures were unsettling and even creepy to hear, but regardless, she simply nodded in agreement.

"The price on this wand is fifty Galleons," Ollivander said. "It's very expensive for a wand, I know, but it's not a wand that you'll find in any old wand shop. Most would doubt that a wand of Leviathan even exists."

"Fifty?!" Aileen exclaimed. "I don't have fifty Galleons!"

Ollivander bit his lip, remaining quiet for a moment.

"All right," he said, "if you promise to take special care of this wand, then... I will give it to you for ten Galleons. We've had it for long enough, and we're not likely to find another match for it, in any case. But, you must promise me that you won't abuse it."

"I won't, I promise," Aileen confirmed, opening her money bag and pulling out a handful of coins, separating the Galleons. She didn't have the chance to count them before Ross stopped her.

"Put that away," Ross instructed. "Save your money for your textbooks. I'll pay for your wand."

"You don't have to do that," Aileen said. "My dad doesn't want you to help me buy stuff."

"I really don't care what your dad wants," Ross said with a wink. "It'll be our little secret, yeah?"

Ross then retrieved a handful of gold coins from the pocket of his dark overcoat. He counted out ten Galleons and placed them in Ollivander's hand.

Once the Sycamore was paid for, Aileen and Ross went to find Maxwell. Ollivander's wife was still explaining the wandlore to him.

"And this one is a Holly wand," the woman told Maxwell, showing him a wand within one of the boxes. "Holly wands are usually very loyal and protective. Most of the time, they're paired with unicorn hair, as the purity of the unicorn matches well with the general good natured-ness of the Holly wand. But, this one is different. This one uses dragon heartstrings instead of unicorn hair. Dragon heartstring is the most powerful wand core, so, this wand has the potential to be both protective and devastating."

"I like it," Maxwell grinned, taking the wand from its box and holding it upright. This wand was much darker and thicker than the Sycamore, and looked much more like a tree branch, but with a large, well-adapted handle, onto which Maxwell's large hands fit well. He gave it a twirl, and a series of beautiful colors danced around at the end of the wand like a quivering rainbow.

"Look!" Maxwell beamed, displaying the colors for Aileen and his father to see.

"I think you've found your match," Ollivander's wife said. "It looks quite beautiful."

Ross gave Ollivander the money for Maxwell's new Holly wand, and then, he, Maxwell, and Aileen headed for the exit. Ross took the liberty of pulling Aileen's trunk for her, and just before she went out the door, she met eyes with Ollivander one last time.

"Be careful when you're being extraordinary," he told her, giving her a farewell wave.

Aileen nodded, then followed Ross and Maxwell outside, all of them merging into the crowd of wizards once more. She was overly relieved when they entered the crowd of Diagon Alley again, no longer burdened with the hunt for school supplies. Their shopping was finished, and Ross took the two children to a new pub, which was across from a gigantic, obnoxiously colorful shop called Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Ross helped himself to a large glass of spiked butterbeer, and while Aileen was perfectly content with drinking normal pumpkin juice, Maxwell insisted that he was grown up enough to handle his father's favorite alcohol. So, Ross allowed Maxwell a few sips of his whiskey-laced butterbeer, and Maxwell - being a lover of all things sweet - apprehended the glass and drank the rest of it all on his own. They finished their drinks before long, and they left the pub, marching out onto Diagon Alley's street once again.

"Alright, it's about time for us to get out of here," Ross said, checking his pocket watch. "Your train leaves at eleven o'clock. We need to be there by ten thirty-"

"Owl!" Maxwell cried out, pointing up at the sky.

Ross and Aileen glanced upwards, as did many of the surrounding witches and wizards. A fluffy black owl was flapping and wavering over the heads of the crowd. It was someone's pet that had escaped its cage.

Suddenly, like a dog preparing to ambush its prey, Maxwell darted after it. When the owl drifted closer to the ground, Maxwell took a dive, landing stomach first on the cobblestone and wrapping his arms around the getaway owl. The bird squawked and struggled, but it couldn't break free of Maxwell's hold.

Aileen could have laughed. From where she stood, Maxwell was practically bear-hugging a bird, and it looked downright comical.

"Oy, be careful, son. Don't hurt it," Ross told Maxwell. "You could break one of its wings if you hold it too tight."

Many of the wizards were watching Maxwell with the same humored stare as Aileen. Seconds later, a young boy pushed through the crowd, carrying an empty cage and looking around for his escaped bird. When he spotted Maxwell, he rushed over to him and pushed his runaway owl back into its cage, locking the little metal door after successfully stuffing the bird inside.

"Thanks for catching him for me," the boy said to Maxwell. "I opened his cage to give him some bread, and he just flew away. We just bought him today. He doesn't listen to me."

"That was fun," Maxwell laughed to himself, hiding shyly behind his bangs and not meeting eyes with the boy.

"Albus!" A woman's voice broke out of the crowd. "Albus Severus Potter!"

A slender, redheaded woman stepped out of the alley and approached the young boy.

"Don't you dare run off in the middle of Diagon Alley without us!" the boy's mother exclaimed. "Someone could snatch you off the streets!"

"I had to catch him, Mum. Our new owl was trying to run away!" the boy named Albus protested, but his mother didn't look appeased.

Then, Albus'ss father emerged from the mob of wizards, and many heads turned in his direction. Albus had the same dark hair as his father, though he lacked the glasses and the scar. Aileen and Maxwell weren't aware of this man's identity, but most of the wizards around them recognized the boy who lived, including Ross.

Ross met eyes with Harry Potter, giving him a single, solemn nod. Ross had met Harry numerous times, as both of them worked as aurors.

"Come on, son," Harry said to Albus, ignoring the stares and whispers that he was getting. "We need to get to the train station. Don't open that cage again, unless you'd like your brother's new pet to fly all the way to Hogwarts by himself."

Albus obeyed his father, carrying his large owl cage in both arms and following Harry back towards the crowd.

As they walked by, Aileen held up her snake's cage, giving the python a good view of the big black owl.

" _What do you think of owls_?" Aileen asked the snake.

" _I like them, so long as they refrain from trying to eat me_ ," the snake replied.

A couple of the wizards standing nearest to Aileen gave her looks of shock and disgust.

Harry Potter, who was walking away with his wife by one side and his son by the other, halted in his step, only for a second. He'd heard it; someone was speaking Parseltongue. After a split second of hesitation, he continued onward, intent on getting his children to the train station on time and choosing not to concern himself with whatever he had heard.

Ross had the same goal in mind. Seconds after the departure of the Potter family from their presence, Ross took hold of both children's arms. He warned them to ready themselves for the uncomfortable transportation that was apparation, and soon, the deafening crack occurred, and Ross, Aileen, and Maxwell vanished from Diagon Alley.


	3. Potters, Weasleys, & Malfoys

_Crack._

Ross, Maxwell, and Aileen manifested in an isolated room of the train station, containing only a vending machine and a few benches. Aileen felt sick again, and Maxwell grasped his head, as the sudden transport had given them both a headache and a stomachache. Ross then pulled a small wooden cube from his inner coat pocket, preformed a spell on it, and it unfolded like a very complicated jigsaw puzzle. Within a minute, the wooden cube had become a fully sized trunk, similar to Aileen's, only his was blue rather than a worn, graying black. Ross then separated Maxwell's school belongings from Aileen's and sorted all of them accordingly, and once he was finished, both children pulled their trunks out of the room and onto platform ten.

The train station was packed with people, a few of them pulling or pushing trunks and large carts. One or two of them even had caged pets in their possession, and Aileen suspected that they were Hogwarts goers as well. Seeing the trains and the people readying themselves for departure, a knot developed in the pit of Aileen's stomach. When they were doing their school shopping, it was a fun, new experience... but here, seeing everyone getting ready to leave? The reality of her leaving for the school year began to weigh on her. She would not see her mother, her father, or her carnival for a year, and she would be stuck in an all new place, full of strangers and magic. A wave of anxiety swept over her, and all at once, the idea of Hogwarts was becoming more nerve wracking than fun. At first, she simply hadn't wanted to leave home out of laziness or not wanting to adjust to such a big change, but then, she'd started to embrace the idea, as it sounded like a fun adventure. But now - now that she was actually about to board a train and ride away - it didn't seem like quite as much fun as she expected.

"Where is it?" Maxwell asked, taking his rectangular, black-rimmed glasses off of his shirt's collar and sliding them onto his face. He squinted around the train station. "Where's our train?"

"On platform nine and three-quarters," Ross told him. "I'll take you there. Oh, and keep your glasses on, son. You'll need your glasses when you're in school. You need to be able to read your books, and it's not a good idea to be practicing spells without 20/20 vision. Keep them on at all times."

Maxwell sighed. He didn't like to wear his glasses.

Ross took the children through the station, and in only minutes, they reached the wall between platforms nine and ten. Aileen stared up at Ross, looking confused.

"We're a little early, so it might take a few minutes for the train to take off," Ross said. "I won't be able to stay, unfortunately. I have to head over to the Ministry for a meeting at eleven. Which one of you want to go first?"

Maxwell, unlike Aileen, knew what he was supposed to do. His father had told him how to get onto the platform before they left home. He grabbed his trunk tightly, took a speedy stride towards the brick wall, and instead of colliding with it, he vanished, like a ghost fazing through a solid structure.

Aileen stared at the wall. None of the surrounding muggles noticed Maxwell's disappearance. The platform's wall must have been covered with a perception charm, or something of the like.

"Come on," Ross said, his hand on her back. "It's not as hard as it looks. Let's move."

He guided her forward, and even if she wanted to stop, she couldn't with him pushing her along. Aileen and Ross marched towards the wall, and the world around them faded away, quickly being replaced with a new train station, one engulfed in steam. Somewhere in the steam clouds was the deep, shining crimson shell of a train; it was the exterior of the Hogwarts Express.

Aileen looked behind her, seeing Ross and the brick wall. Maxwell stood only feet away from them. Perhaps it was normal to walk through walls in the wizardly world.

Maxwell's arms went around his father's neck, and he hung from Ross's body while they hugged one another goodbye. Ross went over the rules with him, reminding him to keep his glasses on and to stay out of trouble while he was at school. Then, Ross tasseled Aileen's already messy hair, and waved at the two kids, motioning for them to board the train. Within seconds, another crack occurred, and Ross was gone.

Aileen and Maxwell looked to one another for a moment before dragging their trunks towards the train's nearest entrance. They thumped up the three stairs, pushed open a narrow door, and entered one of the train's carts, squeezing their trunks into a tight hallway. The conductor showed them where to be seated and instructed them to place their trunks on the shelf above the window, and they obliged. Once the conductor left them alone, Aileen and Maxwell sat across from each other in the small room. It wasn't time for the train to leave yet, and hardly any of the other students had shown up. Neither of them could think of anything to say, so they sat in silence for a few minutes, both of them playing with their wands and pondering on the year ahead.

The snake turned its head sideways, eyeing Aileen. She had set the cage beside her on the leathery bench. The snake watched her curiously.

" _I promised you that I'd let you out of your cage whenever you wanted, didn't I_?" Aileen said. " _All right, come here_."

Aileen unfastened the locking mechanism on the cage's small door, and once it was opened, the python slithered out, weaving its long scaly body over the surface of the bench. The creature's colors were beautiful to observe; the scales were mostly a very deep brown that looked almost black, with designs up and down its back that were lighter shades, elegant spots and lines of amber and maroon.

"He zig-zags whenever he moves around," Maxwell commented.

"Yeah, he does," Aileen said.

"You should call him Ziggy," Maxwell suggested.

"I like that name," Aileen replied, turning to the snake. " _What do you think? Would you like to be called Ziggy_?"

" _I'm honored to be bessstowed a name_ ," it hissed in response.

A little time went by. Aileen placed her head against the window, allowing her mind to wander out of boredom. She pictured what Hogwarts might look like, what the classes might be like, and what she would be the very best at. Charms? Defensive spells? Or, perhaps the ability to control fire? She doubted that Hogwarts even had a class for elemental manipulation, but she would find a way to teach it to herself nonetheless.

Maxwell laid on his side, curling his arms around his head and drifting into a light sleep on the bench. After a while, the train began to fill with students, the noisy voices of kids echoing up and down the hall outside. Ziggy weaved over Aileen's lap and rose his head, licking the glass of the window. Maxwell was somehow able to nap despite the loud voices in the hallway. Aileen was able to hear various goodbyes from the Hogwarts students as they leaned out of the windows, waving to their parents and loved ones. This continued for about ten minutes, and at last, the train shifted, and Aileen was able to feel it moving. The train departed the station, gliding down the tracks and emerging under the sunlight, though they could not see the buildings or the cars outside of the station from their windows; the train was in an entirely new place now, surrounded by lush grass and beautiful scenery. When they had stepped onto the platform, they had entered the wizarding world, leaving the muggle world behind and heading off to school blind from their perception. As the trail rolled on, Aileen rested her head on the window, not bothered by the muffled laughing and chattering emitting from up and down the hall, or the light snores that came from Maxwell. Ziggy curled around her neck twice, lying his head on her shoulder and placing his tail inside her cloak, wanting to steal her warmth. Aileen barely noticed. Her mind was occupied with the idea of Hogwarts, and her heart thumped nervously under her ribs as she indulged the thoughts. Never before had she been so far out of her comfort zone. Would she be able to make friends? Would she pass her classes? Did she have any chance of succeeding in Hogwarts? Who knew.

"Stop it, James!" someone yelled just outside of the doors. "Leave it alone!"

Aileen looked up; a young boy, someone she had seen only a short while ago, opened the sliding door and stepped into her and Maxwell's room, a large cage tucked under one of his arms. This cage didn't contain the big feathery owl that the boy had been seen with at Diagon Alley. It instead held a big, brown ferret.

"Sorry," Albus Potter said, meeting Aileen's eyes. "My brother keeps trying to let Cocoa out of his cage. He won't leave me alone. Do you mind if I sit in here instead?"

"No, not at all," Aileen told him. "So, the owl wasn't yours, then?"

"The owl is my brother's," Albus replied, taking a seat beside her. "We're both supposed to use it for delivering mail this year, but I'll probably just use some owl from the owlery. James would probably try to charge me for using his owl or something. He always does stuff like that."

"Seven!" Maxwell snorted, jumping upright and waking himself up.

Aileen and Albus stared at him.

Maxwell blinked, not caring to straighten his glasses or pat down his messy hair.

"Oh. Did we leave already?" Maxwell said, looking to the window and noticing that the world was passing them by.

"Yeah, the train pulled out a little while ago," Albus told him.

"Owl boy?" Maxwell squinted at Albus. "Where'd you come from?"

"My name's Albus," Albus informed, letting slip an amused smile. "Albus Potter. You can call me owl boy if you want, though."

Maxwell scooted forward and held out his hand. "I'm Maxwell, and this is Aileen."

"Nice to meet you both," Albus returned his handshake. "Are you guys first years, too?"

"Aye," Maxwell and Aileen both replied.

"Cool," Albus said, a hint of relief in his tone. He seemed to like being among other first years, as they made him much less nervous than the older students. "So... which house are you guys hoping to get in? You've heard of the houses, right?"

Maxwell shook his head.

"I've heard a little bit from my parents," Aileen replied. "But... I don't really know much about the different houses."

"Well," Albus started. "The school is divided between four different houses based on people's personalities. There's Gryffindor, for people who are bold and honorable. There's Hufflepuff, for people who are caring and loyal. There's Ravenclaw, for people who are really really smart. And then, there's Slytherin... for people who are really talented and cunning." His voice dampened slightly when he mentioned Slytherin. "I heard that... sometimes, wizards go bad. Most wizards who turn bad are people who were in Slytherin House... like Voldemort."

Anyone else might have shuddered at hearing the name, but Maxwell and Aileen, who didn't grow up in the dark ages of Voldemort's reign, were fairly unfazed at hearing it. They both knew who Voldemort was, of course, after their families had told them stories of the Dark Lord, but neither of them had any reason to fear his name.

"Does it really matter which house you get into?" Aileen asked.

"Well... I guess not," Albus mumbled, though his tone was unconvincing. "I just... don't like the idea of being in Slytherin."

"Why?" Maxwell said. "It's not like all Slytherins are bad, right?"

"I guess..." Albus sighed.

"It's not like they can pick our future for us," Aileen commented. "No matter which house we get into, we're the only ones who can decide what path to choose after we get out of school. They can't pick that for us. So, it seems kind of pointless to worry about it."

"Yeah," Albus uttered. "But... if I am tossed in Slytherin, my brother won't let me hear the end of it..."

"Who cares what he thinks?" Aileen said. "It's your life, not his. You don't have to impress anybody."

Albus looked down at his feet. Aileen wasn't entirely aware of the legacy that Albus's father had unintentionally placed on the Potter name; it was more than simply being placed in the right house. Albus had to live up to the Potter name, or at least, he felt as if he had to. He wasn't sure how to deal with that pressure.

Aileen, on the other hand, was the very opposite. Nobody in Hogwarts would know her, and she would be expected to start fresh, with a new name and a new face. It made sense that she didn't completely understand Albus's problem, but she stood by what she said; regardless of what pressure other people put on you, you ought to live for yourself, striving to meet nobody's expectations but your own.

"So, um... what kind of wands did you guys get?" Albus asked, pulling out a sleek wand from his inner jacket. "Mine is a Holly, with a phoenix feather core."

"Mine is a Holly too!" Maxwell exclaimed a bit too excitedly. "But mine has dragon heartstring, not a phoenix feather."

"My wand is a Sycamore," Aileen told them, revealing her wand from her cloak's large pocket. "With, uh... dragon heartstring."

"Maybe we can test them out in the dueling club," Albus said. "My dad told me that Hogwarts has a dueling club after class hours."

"Really?" Aileen replied, a twinkle of intrigue in her eyes. "That sounds fun."

"Hey!" a new voice chimed in.

Everyone looked up to see a scraggly-haired boy leaning into the room after having slid the door open. The boy was older than Aileen, Maxwell, or Albus, but not by much. He, unlike any of them, had already changed into his school robes.

"Why did you run off?" the boy asked Albus. "Got tired of sitting with the cool kids?"

"You wouldn't leave me alone!" Albus proclaimed, scooting his caged ferret closer to Aileen's side. "And you keep picking on my ferret!"

"Oh, boo hoo," Albus's brother cackled. "I wasn't hurting it. You're a big boy. You can handle Hogwarts hazing."

To Albus'ss despair, his brother entered the enclosed space and sat beside him, forcing Albus to move to the side in order to make room for him.

Another boy, one with slightly darker skin and a head of short, curly black hair, entered the room after him and sat beside Maxwell.

"Well?" Albus's brother said. "Are you gonna introduce us?"

Albus groaned.

"Aileen, Maxwell, this is my brother, James, and my cousin, Fred," Albus said, motioning first to his brother, then the boy sitting opposite them. "Guys, this is Aileen and Maxwell. They're first years."

"First years?" the boy called Fred said. "So we have to haze them, too?"

"Wicked," James sneered.

Maxwell seemed undisturbed by the arrival of the two thirteen year olds, but Aileen had put herself on guard. She didn't like the way these two older boys were talking. Hazing? What did that mean? They'd better not try anything with her, or she might become a fire hazard...

"What's up, little man?" Fred said, rubbing Maxwell's head. "Which house do you want to be placed in?"

Maxwell stared at him, only just realizing that more people were sitting around him than before.

"Griffin... huffel... raven... Slytherin?" Maxwell mumbled, trying to remember all the house names. "I dunno."

"What about you?" James asked, looking to Aileen from over Albus's lap.

Ziggy had slithered into a ball on Aileen's legs after abandoning her neck, as having Albus and James squished next to her left the snake little room to be stretched out on the bench. Aileen didn't want to answer. Who were these people, and why were they asking questions about things that weren't their business?

"I don't know either," Aileen told them. "It doesn't matter to me."

"You'd better hope you don't end up in Slytherin. That's all I have to say," James said. "Slytherins are _eeeeeevil_!"

"Huffelpuff and Ravenclaw are just filler houses for the people who aren't strong enough to be in Gryffindor or Slytherin, too," Fred added. "Slytherins are strong, but they're always bad guys. Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs are just the houses for people who aren't particularly talented. Gryffindor is the only good house, and us Weasleys have been in Gryffindor for generations. I've got nothing to worry about."

"What a ridiculously bias statement," a female's voice broke in.

A girl stood in the open doorway now, her long red hair tied into a ponytail, her glasses hanging off of the collar of her robes, and her arms crossed in a firm, displeased way. The girl's eyes narrowed at Fred.

"I only followed you to remind you to change into your robes, Fred," she said curtly, then traded glances between Aileen and Maxwell. "Don't listen to him. My parents taught me everything I need to know about the four houses. They're divided by attributes of honor, loyalty, cleverness, and cunning. None of them are better than another." She shot Fred another glare. "They're just different from one another. Not better, just different."

"Of course _you_ would say that, being a ready-made Ravenclaw," James sniggered. "Uncle Ron always said that you were just like your mother. You're such a know-it-all."

"Being a know-it-all is _much_ better than being empty-headed, like _some_ people," the girl replied with a snarky smile.

"That's my other cousin, Rose Weasely," Albus whispered to Aileen. "She's a first year, too."

"How many cousins do you have?" Aileen asked.

"A lot," Albus said.

Rose Weasley smacked Fred on the arm, making him scoot over so that she could seat herself next to him.

"C'mon," James said. "Seriously, you can't say that Slytherins are all good people. You've got to give me that, at least. All witches and wizards who went bad were Slytherins."

"Oh, they were? Like who? Name them off for me," Rose challenged.

James opened his mouth, but he drew a blank.

Rose laughed. "See? You don't know of any wizards who went bad. You're just repeating everything you've heard from my dad."

"What about you-know-who?" James said.

"That's one wizard, and he just _happened_ to be a Slytherin. That doesn't make them all bad."

"And the Malfoys? Lucius? Draco? They were Death Eaters."

"So? They repented their ways, didn't they?"

"But they were still Death Eaters - and the Crabbe family, too. And the Goyles, and the Blacks, and the Lestranges."

"Were they all in Slytherin house?"

"Well, I'm not sure, but..."

"Then your whole argument is invalid. You can't blame Slytherin for those people's actions if you're not even sure they _were_ in Slytherin."

"And there's Grindlewald, too."

"Grindlewald didn't even _go_ to Hogwarts. He was from Durmstrang."

"Listen..."

James gaped at her, once again failing to form an argument.

"Man," Fred chuckled. "You just got beat by an eleven-year-old."

"I did _not_!" James protested. "She's just trying to find a reason to argue, but my point still stands. Slytherin is full of bad people. Even their founder was evil! He was a pureblood supremacist, and a Parseltongue! Slytherin House was founded on evil!"

"Okay, first of all, being able to speak Parseltongue doesn't make you evil," Rose told him. "And secondly - Salazar Slytherin might have had some bad views on wizarding blood, but that doesn't mean that every Slytherin shares those views. It's a coincidence that one of the founders had these views. That's all it is. A coincidence."

"You've _got_ to be kidding me," James pouted. "Am I wrong? Fred, tell her I'm not wrong!"

"Hey, I'm staying out of this," Fred snickered. "You're losing this fight pretty badly."

"Am not! And that Scorpius Malfoy - I bet he's placed in Slytherin. I bet you ten Galleons, he is. Just like the rest of his family," James said.

"So what if he is? That doesn't make him evil. Just like the Weasleys being placed in Gryffindor doesn't make them all winners," Rose replied, looking at Fred again. "Slytherins are cunning, so if anything, Scorpius being placed in Slytherin would just prove that he's smarter than you."

Fred, Albus, and Aileen all exploded into laughter.

James folded his arms and went silent, his cheeks fading an embarrassed scarlet.

Aileen was tempted to talk to Ziggy, to speak Parseltongue in front of everyone and to spark some kind of frightened reaction out of Fred and James, but she decided against it. Maxwell's father had told her that Parselmouths have a bad reputation among the wizarding community, and now, she had some clue as to why. It wouldn't be wise to draw that kind of negative attention to herself. Still, it would have been funny to see James' mouth drop open whenever he'd hear her hissing and spitting in snake language...

"I think my dad was a Slytherin," Aileen told everyone. "He wasn't able to finish school, but he did go to Hogwarts for a few years, and I think he was in Slytherin..."

It was true. Her parents had told her numerous stories about Hogwarts, and even though she never bothered to show much interest in them, she could somewhat recall her father's statements about Slytherin, now that the houses were brought to her attention again.

"Is your dad into the Dark Arts? I bet he-" James started, but Albus smacked him on the arm.

"My dad can do magic without a wand," Aileen retorted proudly. "And my mom was in Gryffindor. My parents are both really talented, and I bet my dad can do magic better than you ever will."

"Oh yeah? I'd like to see him go up against my dad," James replied. "Do you know who my dad is? My dad is Harry Potter."

"Really?" Aileen reached her feet, suddenly feeling challenged. She held Ziggy and her wand with one arm and extended the other. "I bet he can't do this."

Her arm reached out in what little open space was between the two seats, and everyone had a front row view of it. Aileen tensed up her hand, her arm muscles flexing, and a tiny flame ignited just an inch above her palm. She held the flame in place, just low enough so that everyone could see it.

James snorted. "Big deal. So you can make fire? So what?"

"You should see what my dad can do," Aileen said, clutching her palm and making the flame vanish. "My dad can make entire waves of fire with his hands. He can make shapes out of it, too, like dragons and lions. He can make the fire look like it's alive."

"So? My dad defeated the greatest dark wizard in the entire world," James boasted. "What's that compared to a few fireworks? There's no comparison-"

"Goodness, will you stuff it already?" Rose interrupted. "Do you _have_ to start a fight with every first year on the train just to make yourself feel like you're better than them? Who _cares_ whose dad is stronger. Just let it go. There's no sense in fighting over something so silly."

James went quiet.

Aileen took her seat, though she didn't feel quite satisfied. The argument was silly, she knew that, but she still wanted to prove herself, to show what the O'Heidin family was really capable of. She could have whipped out her wand and made another brilliant display of fire for the others to see, but that wouldn't be a good idea in such an enclosed space...

"Anything from the trolley?" an old woman's voice bounced up and down the hall. "Anything from the trolley?"

The old woman pushed slowly past the doorway, and Maxwell was the first person to lay eyes on the trolley full of sweets. Licorice wands stuck out from the top, surrounded by small boxes filled with bags of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans, chocolate frogs, and countless other favorites. In no time, Maxwell was on his feet; even though his father had explicitly told him not to waste his money all in one setting, Maxwell bought at least five of every candy, if not more. Moments later, he maneuvered back to his seat with two armfuls of snacks, reclaiming his spot on the bench and spilling all of the candy onto his lap, some of it falling to the floor.

Aileen, Albus, Rose, Fred, and James all observed Maxwell as he picked through his candy, shoving one of the licorice wands into his mouth and popping open a chocolate frog. The frog sprung to life the moment the box was opened. It hopped over his legs and nearly landed on Aileen's lap, but Ziggy's neck shot forward, and the snake caught the frog midair, sinking its fangs into its chocolaty torso. Everyone laughed.

Then, Maxwell held out one of his many candy wands, offering it to Aileen.

"Oh, thanks," Aileen said, taking the wand from him.

"Hey, man, you've got the motherload," James said to Maxwell. "What about the rest of us? Are you gonna share, or what?"

"Yeah, lookit me," Fred patted a hand on his flat stomach. "I'm a fat kid. I need to eat."

"For heaven's _sake_ , you two," Rose said. "It's _his_ candy. Don't go acting like you're both entitled to it."

"Mhm," Maxwell nodded at them, his mouth stuffed full of licorice and half of a chocolate frog, its two brown legs dangling from his lips and kicking in an attempt to resist being eaten. "'Ou guys can haff whatever 'ou vant. Hep yourse'ves."

"Sweet," James and Fred both said, bending over and collecting all the candy that had fallen onto the floor.

The six of them traded candies for about five minutes. Aileen placed her forehead on the window again, watching as the train rolled over a bridge, overtop of a humongous, beautiful river. Ziggy continued chomping on the chocolate frog in his mouth until the enchanted candy stopped struggling, then, the python swallowed the lump of mangled chocolate whole.

A bit of time went by, and James and Fred traded conversation about their favorite goods from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, and which ones they would use this year to torment their peers and teachers. Rose had an apprehensive comment for just about anything that the two boys would say, and Albus and Maxwell spoke to each other once every few minutes, Albus politely asking for a piece of candy and Maxwell obliging each time. Maxwell wasn't speaking much; usually, whenever he was around Aileen, he'd be much more talkative. He had an unusually shy disposition whenever he was around anyone else, it seemed.

Aileen didn't feel up to talking now. They would arrive at Hogwarts any minute, and she wanted to change into her robes, but she wasn't sure if she even had any school robes. Were their school uniforms on this train somewhere, ready and available for the students to use? Or did her father think to pack her a hand-me-down robe? She couldn't be sure...

Rose gasped, and James let out a loud yell.

Aileen glimpsed up, wondering what all the fuss was about.

Just then, a tiny, winged creature flew into the doorway and circled through the air above their heads. It was a dinky black bat, and it fluttered around in a panicky way, realizing that there was nowhere to go. So, the bat zipped downward and hit the back of the bench, hiding itself inside the folds of Aileen's cloak, its little body concealed between Aileen and the wall. Aileen raised her arms, staring down at the bat as if she'd never seen anything quite like it before. Where had it come from, and why was it hiding behind her?

Seconds later, a man emerged from the hallway, his arms leaning on the door frame and his eyes studying the inside of Aileen's sitting area; It was a tall, slim individual, wearing a stylish crimson suit and a thin, black cloak, similar to Aileen's, but his was much newer. The man's hair was a short assortment of spiked-up lumps, which looked to be stuck together with hair gel, and upon closer inspection, Aileen was able to see that his eyes were two different colors; red and hazel. He wasn't old. In fact, he appeared to be in his late twenties or early thirties, his skin as pale as the moon and his cheekbones perfectly accenting his narrow face.

All of the students looked up at him, saying nothing.

The man's multicolored eyes scanned over the interior of the small room, obviously searching for something.

"Have any of you seen a stray bat?" the man questioned them. "I saw it fly in through a window. I'd like to get it off the train. We don't need stray animals running amok."

"Um... nope," James lied. "We haven't seen anything, Professor."

Rose shot James a disapproving look.

"Yeah, we haven't seen any bats." Fred said. "Maybe it flew out through somebody else's window already?"

The bat stayed nested into Aileen's side, out of the mysterious man's eyeshot.

The man surveyed the room one last time, then slid the door shut and continued down the hallway. Everyone waited until he was far away from the room before they spoke, so not to be overheard.

"Why did you lie to him?" Rose said to James. "You should have just told him the truth."

"Why? Look at the little guy," James replied, gesturing to Aileen's side, where the little bat was crawling up her hip, poking its head out from under the cloak. "He obviously doesn't want to be thrown off the train. Maybe one of us can keep him as a pet."

Rose didn't reply to this.

Albus reached out to the bat, but the bat quickly withdrew itself, hiding under the cloak once again.

"He doesn't seem to like people very much," Rose said. "Maybe that's why he's hiding. He might have had some bad experiences with humans in the past."

"See? All the more reason to look after him," James told her.

"Who _was_ that guy?" Aileen asked, glancing down to see Ziggy flick his tongue on her cloak, smelling the area where the bat was hiding.

"That was the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher," Fred informed her. "Professor Trocar Edwin Crowley."

"Yeah, don't let him intimidate you," James said. "Professor Crowley might be the head of Slytherin House, but he's not as scary as he looks."

"Who's the head of Gryffindor house?" Albus asked.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" James responded. "It's Professor Longbottom, Albus. I thought Dad told you that already."

"Did you know that Headmistress McGonagall retired last year?" Fred said. "Who's gonna be the headmaster this year, y'think?"

"My mother told me that the new headmaster is someone called Zander Alexander Arius." Rose told them. "I'm not sure who he is. I've never heard of him before."

Aileen was hardly paying attention to the conversation. The bat had made itself visible by her side, but only just. It got comfortable on her cloak, covering itself with its paper thin wings and preparing to take a nap. Ziggy cocked his head curiously at the bat, and Aileen smiled. Perhaps she could make time to take care of two pets. She didn't want to toss the bat outside, after all.

It wasn't long before the sun began to set outside, and the students were all prompted to change into their robes. Fred and Maxwell left the room after claiming their robes from their trunks. They made their way to the boys' bathroom and changed clothes, and Aileen was extra cautious when she stood, so not to send the little bat flying. The bat flipped over and landed on the cushion of the bench next to Ziggy. When Aileen reached upwards towards the shelf holding her trunk, she was relieved when she felt around inside of it and wrapped her hand around an old robe that her father had packed for her. Before she was able to close the trunk, the bat had become airborne again. It flew into her trunk and sandwiched itself between her books. Aileen, figuring that this would be the most efficient way to smuggle the creature into the school anyway, simply closed the trunk with the bat inside. After everyone had changed into their robes, night had fallen outside, and the train was slowing to a stop. Maxwell jammed his trunk full of his leftover candy, and then, everyone was pulling their trunks through the hallway, preparing to exit the train and lay eyes on Hogwarts for the very first time.


	4. Hogwarts, Anew

Once the students stepped onto the cement platform, their belongings were taken away by the Hogwarts staff to be escorted to the school separately. Aileen and Maxwell didn't know it, but traditionally, first years were meant to arrive to the school by crossing the Great Lake on boats, and they couldn't take their trunks with them, as the boats were too small.

James and Fred broke off from the younger students, the two of them being third years and already knowing where to go.

Albus, Rose, Aileen, and Maxwell stood idly by near another small group of first years. Ziggy was coiled around Aileen's arm, though her cage and her trunk had been taken away from her by an unknown adult. She hoped that nobody would open her trunk and find the stowaway bat that was inside.

"Firs' years, come this way, firs' years, c'mon now..." a loud, burly voice called across the platform. "Firs' years! Over here!"

The first years' eyes darted around until they located the shining light of a lantern in the darkness, followed by the man holding it, a towering, monstrous man who stood at what must have been ten feet tall, with long, messy, black hair and a beard to match. His hair had faded a shade lighter in the last nineteen years; he was a half-giant, so, his aging hindered him less than your average man, but he couldn't escape that his hair had started to grey.

"That must be..." Albus mumbled. "That must be Hagrid."

"Who is _that_?" Aileen exclaimed. "He's huge!"

"He was a teacher when my dad went to school here. He's a friend of my dad's." Albus told her.

The gigantic man named Hagrid marched up to them, stopping feet away and staring down at the children.

Albus wasn't surprised, though Aileen, Maxwell, and Rose were trying their absolute best not to gawk at him.

"Spittin' image of your dad, you are. Yer daddy told me you'd be willin' to stop by my place for some tea, once you all are sorted an' situated," Hagrid said to Albus. "And you? You got 'Weasley' written all over you. The hair kinda gives ya' away." He turned to Rose, and she tried to give him a polite smile, only halfway succeeding. "Well, now, c'mon, you lot. Gotta get you all to yer boats. Firs' years! Firs' years, this way!"

He continued down the platform, waving for the eleven year olds to follow him. Aileen, Rose, Maxwell, and Albus were close behind Hagrid, and their crowd grew steadily bigger as they ventured, more of the first years joining along with them. Eventually, the crowd stepped off of the platform and into the grass, following Hagrid over a wide hillside and stopping at the edge of the enormous lake. Once they cleared the hill, Aileen spotted dots of light across the lake, reflecting and shimmering against the water's surface. It was the enlightened windows of the huge, ancient, and magnificent castle of Hogwarts. The school was in their sights, and Aileen was certain that she'd never seen anything so incredible before in her life.

Hagrid instructed everyone to seat themselves in one of the many boats that aligned the lake. Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus chose the same boat, and they waited patiently while the other boats filled. A few of the first years were left with nowhere to sit, so they squeezed themselves into one of the already occupied boats. One of them stepped into Aileen's boat, and after blinking and adjusting her eyes to the darkness, she recognized the boy.

Scorpius Malfoy seated himself in the center of the boat, only inches away from Aileen, who was tucked into the bow. Scorpius glimpsed at Aileen, scowled at her, then crossed his arms and turned away.

Then, without the use of ores or engines, the boats magically moved themselves into the water, following Hagrid's boat smoothly across the lake. As they all drew nearer and nearer to the school, the first years' whispers grew into loud gossip as they traded 'what-ifs' about the school, the classes, and the houses. Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus might have done the same if they weren't in the company of Scorpius. None of them wanted to talk openly with him so close by.

The ride was pleasantly peaceful. Aileen wanted to run her fingers over the water, but she halfway expected some magical creature to burst out of the lake and remove her hand, so she didn't. She instead kept herself occupied by mindlessly stroking the locket that her mother had given her, keeping her other arm secure by her side, the long sleeve of her robe serving as the perfect tool to keep her pet snake out of view. As far as she knew, nobody had noticed that Ziggy the snake was still with her, and she wanted to keep it that way, lest she get into trouble.

Once the boats finally reached the other side of the lake, the enchantment that kept them moving pushed them completely onto dry land. The students began to stand and depart their boats, stepping onto the grass and heading towards the wide path which led up a grand staircase, turning sharp lefts and rights up the mountainside, eventually leading to the gates of Hogwarts. Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus stuck together, but Scorpius was quick to break away from them. Hagrid took the lead, and everyone moved across the path, up the hundreds of stairs, and towards the entrance. The trip took at least ten minutes, and everyone's legs were throbbing madly by the time they reached the top, but the trip had been well worth it; Hogwarts was right before their eyes.

They entered the school, marching through a spectacular hallway where ghosts could be seen poking their heads out of the walls, observing the new arrivals. Many of the older students had arrived in the Great Hall, already seated at their respective tables underneath hundreds of levitating candles and a gorgeous ceiling which mimicked the night sky. Hagrid left the group, and the first years then took to following a tall, dark haired man, who they would later recognize as the head of Griffindor House. Professor Longbottom escorted the students in between the two tables in the center of the endless room, stopping at a stool which sat in front of a row of teachers seated at their own table at the Great Hall's end. On this stool sat an old, wrinkled witch's hat. Aileen forgot to take notice of the hat, or the teachers, or the other students. Her gaze was captivated by the ceiling.

The new headmaster stood behind his podium, a man who looked to be presumably an eighth of Dumbledore's age, and perhaps a third of McGonagall's. His eyes shone a blue that was almost crystalline underneath his wavy, silver bangs, though his hair didn't appear to have become whitened by age. His black hat was an assortment of gems, feathers, chains, studs, and many other strange artifacts, and his dark robe was decorated in a similar manner. Upon first glance, one might have guessed that this man was wildly eccentric, as his clothing screamed insanity. Few knew how legitimate these suspicions were.

Before the headmaster spoke, the worn old hat on the stool moved, a ripped segment of its cloth acting as a mouth. The hat began to sing, and the first years all watched in amazement.

 _"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,_

 _But don't judge by what you see._

 _I'll eat myself if you can find_

 _a smarter hat than me._

 _In your heads a story waits_

 _to flourish and be told_

 _and I am here to guide you,_

 _so that it may unfold._

 _Your journey starts in one place,_

 _One of only four_

 _The houses of the mighty,_

 _Let's start with Gryffindor._

 _You may be bold and brash,_

 _brave, honest, and true_

 _unfazed by fear or hatred_

 _with nothing you can't do._

 _Or, it could be, Hufflepuff,_

 _with hearts of grace and care_

 _compassionate and loyal,_

 _and all the love to share._

 _Yet, maybe you'll be Ravenclaw,_

 _With wits as sharp as knives_

 _cleverness and tactics,_

 _will lead them as they strive._

 _Lastly, there is Slytherin,_

 _the wary and insidious_

 _Though underneath their cunning,_

 _they are truly ambitious._

 _So fear not, you blooming wizards_

 _I shall determine tonight,_

 _which house that you will hale,_

 _which home, for you, is right."_

When the song ended, the headmaster began to clap, and the rest of the Great Hall did the same.

Aileen was pushing towards the front of the crowd to to get a better look at the living hat, but the mob of first years was standing a fair distance from it. After a moment of squinting at the hat, she realized that Maxwell and Albus had followed her to the front of the crowd.

"Wonderful, wonderful," the headmaster said, and when he spoke, the Great Hall silenced. "Welcome, kids, teens, and adults, to another year at Hogwarts. You may not recognize me - I'd be surprised if you did, quite frankly - but your headmistress has finally decided to retire, leaving me in charge of your beloved, outstanding school. My name is Professor Arius. I went to school here many years ago, and since the day of my graduation, I've been traveling the world. Now that I've settled back in my hometown, London, I've decided to take a more stationary occupation. Your faces are as new to me as mine is to all of you, so, I hope that I live up to the great Hogwarts standard, like I know that all of you will. Now, everyone - first, the Sorting Hat will place all of the first years into their houses, and then, you'll be free to feast. Stay seated, and stay patient! Good luck, first years!"

Everyone clapped again. Aileen studied the headmaster from afar. He seemed to be the cheerful type, and she wasn't sure if she liked that about him, or if it annoyed her.

Hagrid claimed his seat at the extensive teacher's table, sitting between Professors Crowley and Trelawney and towering a noticeable few feet taller than both of them. Professor Longbottom marched up to the stool, opened his hand, and a large piece of parchment appeared in his grasp as if from nowhere. He lifted the Sorting Hat and looked to the crowd of first years.

"When I call your name, come forward and sit on the stool," he instructed the crowd. "The Sorting Hat will place you in your house, and you will be pointed to your table. First - Micheal Holloway!"

An unknown boy emerged from the crowd and sat on the stool. Longbottom placed the hat on his head, and after a few seconds of deliberation, the hat made its decision.

"Hufflepuff!" the Sorting Hat shouted.

The boy hopped off the chair, and Longbottom motioned towards the Hufflepuff table.

The professor continued to call students forward, and the Sorting Hat organized them into their houses one by one. Five minutes went by before any familiar names were called.

"Albus Potter!" Longbottom said.

Albus gulped, moving forward and taking his place on the stool. He received a lot of odd looks and whispered, and judging by the look in his face, he wasn't appreciating the extra attention at all. When Longbottom put the Sorting Hat atop his head, Albus felt his teeth grind together.

"Similar to your father, you are," the hat said. "Although there's a bit more Hufflepuff to you than there was him..."

Albus almost begged the hat not to place him in Slytherin. His father had told him that the hat would take his input into account. However, he decided not to, perhaps figuring that the hat could make the decision more efficiently than he could. He would accept whatever the hat chose. It wasn't as if his Hogwarts house would decide his entire future for him, after all...

"You lack that bit of Slytherin he had, you know," the hat added. "I suspect that his horcrux predicament may have altered my judgement, not that I ever make mistakes, mind you… but I digress. Hm... loyalty is something you cherish, but there's more to you than that. I say... Gryffindor!"

The crowd clapped for him, and Albus beamed with pleasure. He left the stool and seated himself with his fellow Gryffindors.

"Oy," Maxwell whispered, patting Aileen lightly on the arm.

"What?" Aileen replied in a hushed tone.

"Whatever houses we're put in... we'll still sit together at lunch, yeah?" Maxwell asked her. "We can sit together, even if we have to break the rules and sit at the wrong tables. Yeah? Good idea?"

"Y-yeah, sure," Aileen answered, not understanding why Maxwell was worried about such a trivial thing. "Er... yeah... even if we're put in different houses, we'll find a way to sit together, I guess. Whatever you say."

Maxwell grinned.

Neither of them were called upon until the crowd of first years had whittled down to about ten in number.

"Maxwell Connelly!" Longbottom yelled.

Maxwell pressed his glasses firmly onto his nose with his knuckles, shuffled forward, and plopped onto the stool. The Sorting Hat crinkled in a way that resembled a thoughtful expression once it was placed on Maxwell's unkempt hair.

"Interesting," the hat muttered. "A Slytherin's ambition, a Gryffindor's bluntness... not dim, but not a genius. All that passion, all that boldness, aimed at... yes, I see it now. You've got a raging fire inside of you, boy, and it's all aimed at your aptitude for connection. You're an empathetic one, you are, and a fierce one at that. I know just what to do with you. Hufflepuff!"

Maxwell, more or less satisfied, leaped from the stool and meandered over to the Hufflepuff table.

Aileen now stood alone with a few other students, and the anxiety was beginning to gnaw at her. Why couldn't she have been one of the first ones to be called on? It wasn't pleasant, standing here and anticipating whatever house she might be thrown into. The longer the minutes stretched, the more nervous she became.

"Scorpius Malfoy!"

At hearing his name, Scorpius strode forward and allowed the professor to put the hat on him.

"Slytherin!" the hat cried at once, and as quickly as he had sat, Scorpius stood and went to the Slytherin table.

"Big surprise there," Aileen murmured to herself.

"Andrea Maxon!"

A small girl went to the stool. After her, Longbottom called out the names of what few students remained standing. Near the end, Aileen was the only one left, apart from another girl who looked just as bored and out of place; this girl had a head of thick, neck-length hair that might have been black, though it shone almost navy blue in the light. Her eyes were an emerald green, and her expression was downright identical to Aileen's; deadpan and almost irritated at having to stand in one spot for so long.

"Erika Sayre!" Longbottom said.

The dark-haired girl stepped forward and took her place on the stool. The Sorting Hat attempted to look down at her when placed on her head.

"A brilliant, brilliant mind," The hat diagnosed. "Very much, oh yes. But your ambitions, your... drives. Could they be Ravenclaw? No, they're wider than that... longer... less bound. Better be... Slytherin!"

The girl, Erika, rose from the seat and followed in Scorpius' stead. Aileen watched her go. Something about the girl put a peculiar feeling in the pit of her stomach, the same way Scorpius did. Was she already beginning to judge the Slytherins based only on the hearsay she'd heard on the train...?

"Aileen O'Heidin!" Longbottom hollered at last.

Her legs feeling as stiff as wood, Aileen rolled her ankles and stepped forward, seating herself on the stool like all the other first years had. It was unnerving, to say the least, seeing the faces of every single Hogwarts student staring back at her. She tried her best to ignore their existence and waited for the hat to sort her.

"Complicated," the hat deemed. "A hotheaded disposition, often found in Gryffindor... and a similar pride to match. You're sharp, although... I don't see you priding yourself on your ability to solve a riddle. No... your intellect is... more instinctual. You'd know when to fight, and when to run. You're quick to learn and adaptable in an urgent situation, but that pride... that pride is so very... Gryffindor. I would have to say... either Gryffindor, or Slytherin. Hm... but which one...?"

"I don't care which one I'm sorted into," Aileen spoke to the hat in a quiet voice. "I'm fine with either one."

"Is that so?" the hat replied. "Well, if you don't care where you are sorted, then I would have to say... you belong in Slytherin."

Aileen shrugged. Professor Longbottom took the hat off of her, and she headed to the Slytherin table on the far left of the Great Hall, taking extra care not to seat herself too close to Scorpius, or the dark haired girl, Erika. The headmaster began to talk to the students again, and minutes later, his speech ceased, and astoundingly, plates, bowls, cups, and pitchers appeared up and down the four gigantic tables, all filled with chicken, ham, and various fruits and vegetables, as well as pumpkin juice and ice water. Aileen was seated near the front of the Great Hall, which enabled her to take a gander at the teachers while she made her plate. After grabbing a chicken leg and two slices of watermelon, her eyes moved from one teacher to another, examining each of them closely.

Hagrid was the most visible one out of all of them, and by his side was the Divination teacher, a wide-spectacled woman named Sybil Trelawney, who's light frizzy ginger hairs now harbored streaks of silver. Her outfit was the only one to match the headmaster's tackiness, and on Hagrid's other side sat Professor Crowley, the man Aileen had seen on the train, his inch-long black hairs spiked, his cloak a slender, lavish black, and his fashion the least attention-grabbing of all the teachers. Professor Neville Longbottom, who was the Herbology teacher as well as head of Gryffindor House, was next to Headmaster Arius, and further down the row was a woman heavily decorated in purple attire, her skin blotchy and discolored in many places, a handsome, suited blonde man, and an Asian gentleman who wore a rather serious face. There were more teachers further down the table, though Aileen was hardly able to see any of the others.

With no one to talk to, Aileen tugged on her sleeve, ensuring that Ziggy's head would remain out of sight, and ate her food in silence. It wasn't bad that she was sorted into Slytherin, was it? After all, she had told the hat that she didn't care which house she was placed in. Besides, her father, who she'd looked up to her entire life, had also been a Slytherin in his younger days. Aileen ought to be proud to have taken after her father. Samuel was her hero.

Still, after spending the whole afternoon talking with Maxwell, Albus, and the others on the train, she felt a tinge of loneliness after being the only one of them to be sorted into Slytherin. This feeling would pass, wouldn't it? Aileen spent a great deal of time on her own back home, not having many children her age who stuck around longer than a vacation-length visit, as her father's carnival played host to very many visitors, but very few inhabitants. It shouldn't bother her to be on her own; she was quite used to it.

Perhaps she expected to make friends at Hogwarts, expected her lifestyle to change for the better upon her arrival here. Could that be why she was disappointed at being separated from the others? It was a silly thing to think about. She had been in Hogwarts for less than an hour. It would take a lot more time than that to make friends. She was accepting disappointment far too early. Aileen would still be able to talk to the others, and who knew; maybe she'd make even more friends in her own house.

The feast carried on for another half an hour, and once everyone seemed to have finished eating, the heads of the houses approached the tables, ready to take the children to their common rooms. Usually, the students would find their own way to their houses after dinner, but on the first night of the year, it was customary for the teachers to escort them, just to make sure that the first years would find their way.

Aileen picked her chicken drumstick clean, not interested in taking seconds. Her fingers reached into her sleeve beneath the table, gently stroking the scaly head of her pet blind to everyone else, but she quickly stopped when she spotted Professor Crowley standing nearby, hovering at the end of the table.

"Come," he said to the Slytherins. "Time for bed."

As the house of Slytherin stood and followed Professor Crowley, Aileen tried to catch a glimpse of Maxwell or Albus, but she didn't cross paths with either of them on her way out of the Great Hall. The Slytherins talked among themselves as they traveled the wide corridors of Hogwarts. After a good while of walking, they arrived to a wide, long staircase leading downwards, into what must have been the housing area of the Slytherins, though there was no door at the bottom, only a stone wall. Professor Crowley stopped feet away from the wall, cleared his throat, and spoke the new Slytherin password.

" _Purity Prevails_."

At once, many of the stones moved to the side, creating a small, extra layer on the wall and revealing a rectangular opening, which led to the dark hallway that would take the students to their common room. Some of the portraits on the wall greeted the students as they entered the opening, wishing some of them good luck on their new year, and welcoming others back from their holiday. Aileen was one of the last students to enter the opening. Because of this, she ended up next to Scorpius again, but she pretended not to notice him. They all entered the hallway, and seconds later, Aileen was able to hear the stone wall thumping itself closed behind her, conforming back to its original shape.

Crowley and the students emerged in the common room less than a minute later; it was a long, low room, with rough stone walls, and greenish, orb-like lamps hung from the ceiling overhead, the fireplace surrounded by carved furniture and the tall, beautiful windows glowing an aqua-green color, and Aileen could have sworn that beyond the windows was nothing but water. Could this common room have been underground, in the Great Lake? If that was the case, then those windows must have been supported by a glass-strengthening charm, or something similarly powerful and ridiculous.

"Boy dormitories are on the far left, and up the stairs. Girls, yours are on the far right. Your belongings are waiting for you inside," Crowley told them. "Make yourselves comfortable, and don't stay up late. You'll be expected in the Great Hall no later than eight in the morning for breakfast, and afterwards, you will be going straight to your classes. Make sure to change into your appropriate robes before you leave in the morning."

At Professor Crowley's shin, a glint of movement caught Aileen's eye. Many of the students looked down to see a short, bony, humanoid figure slowly stepping out from behind the black couch, standing only as tall as the professor's knee, its luminous silver eyes peering up at them and its bat-like ears perking up. The house elf wore a tattered, black stripped pillowcase as its only clothing. Aileen had heard of house elves, but she had never seen one before now.

"As of nine years ago, Hogwarts has assigned a house elf to each house to ensure that the common rooms and the dormitories stay tidy and taken care of," Professor Crowley explained to the students. "This is Allister," Crowley knelt and patted the house elf on its lumpy, wrinkly head. "He will be your servant for the rest of your time in Hogwarts. I trust you will treat him with respect, just as you would any human."

Aileen's eyes lingered on the house elf. Allister's ears reminded her that she had a stray bat locked away in her trunk, and she hoped that she would be able to let it out soon, so to put it in Ziggy's cage and keep it from suffocating in between her textbooks.

"Allister is most pleased to meet you, sirs and madams," the tiny elf squeaked, giving the students a small bow. "Allister is a humble and loyal servant to the noble house of Slytherin."

The students took turns talking to the house elf and asking it a variety of invasive questions, mostly consisting of inquiries like, "What are you willing to do? Will you do anything we tell you to?" And as this went on, Professor Crowley left the common room, leaving the students to their own devices. Some of the Slytherins were quite entertained at having a house elf at their disposal, while the others departed to their dormitories, wanting to get some rest after their long day of school shopping and train riding.

Aileen had no interest in interrogating the house elf or talking to her peers. So, she headed to the far right of the stone room, walked through a large doorway, and entered a spacious, dimly glowing room, filled with beds, dressers, portraits, and tasteful snake themed decor. A few of the Slytherin girls were choosing their beds already. Aileen quickly located her trunk and her empty cage, which were sitting against the wall by the doorway. She took them and dragged them across the entire room, not stopping until she reached the other side, standing before a wall that featured an enormous, circular window. Her speculation had been correct; outside of the oversized window was a deep aquatic green, inhabited by loose particles of dirt and weeds, as well as schools of tiny fish. The Slytherin common room was, indeed, underneath - or inside of - the Great Lake.

Before anyone could beat her to it, Aileen claimed the bed at the edge of the room, the one closest to the giant window. Ziggy slid out of her sleeve and curled up on the surface of the bed's pine green blanket. Aileen sat cross-legged in front of her bed, popped her trunk open, and slowly lifted the lid, only to find that her stowaway bat was snoozing in the very place it had wedged itself earlier in the day. Once the bat realized that the trunk was open, it jolted awake and flew into the air - and it whizzed out of the room before Aileen could think to grab for it.

Aileen stared at the darkened doorway for about a minute after the bat had escaped through it.

Why did it have to fly away? Aileen was already lacking in friends. Did she really have to start losing her pets, too? Sure, she often wandered by her lonesome in or around her father's carnival, but this wasn't the same. Here, she had no family to return to every night, no mother or father to talk to.

Aileen crawled into the bed, hiding under the blanket and allowing Ziggy to join her, his body slithering into the covers and forming into a ball by her side.

" _How do you like this place_?" Aileen asked Ziggy.

" _I have a bed to sssleep in_ ," Ziggy responded. " _This place is paradissse_."

Aileen snuggled into her pillow, clutching her mother's locket close to her chest and wrapping herself in the blanket as tightly as she could. Perhaps she would feel less out of place tomorrow, when she would see her classes for the first time, and when she would speak to Maxwell and Albus again. Maybe, tomorrow, Hogwarts would become paradise for her, too...


	5. Bearings

Having never slept anywhere apart from her own bed back home, Aileen had a restless night.

How different it was, hearing the breaths of the other students as they snoozed and snored, her eyes drifting open occasionally to the dim greenish atmosphere, finding herself unable to turn onto her side because a python was resting on top of her...

Aileen lay in bed for a solid hour before her body finally understood that it was time to sleep. Many of the other students stayed awake much later than they should have, and early in the morning, someone had gotten up, rifled through their belongings, and left the dormitory. The noises continuously interrupted her dreamlike fantasies, her memories of a family trip to the beach playing through her mind like an old movie, when her mother had fashioned a picnic on the shore and when her father had tossed her into the ocean at age five. Even in a mostly asleep state, Aileen was still quite capable of harboring a deep annoyance at her peers. Didn't any of them have enough consideration to keep the noise down when others were trying to sleep? Even the echoing music and ambient voices from her father's carnival had never bothered her this much...

At seven in the morning, she finally gave up on getting a restful sleep and pushed herself out of bed. They would be expected to eat their breakfasts and head to their classes in an hour, anyway.

Aileen found the bathrooms after wandering around the dormitory twice; she would later find that it wasn't half the size of most of the school bathrooms, containing only three toilets and a few showers. It was convenient enough. She peeked into an ovular mirror, patted down her short, wavy hair, and examined her eyes. Today, her eyes were a deep, oceanic blue. Her eyes would change color from time to time, and she never knew why. It was probably some side effect to being of a magical bloodline, she guessed.

On the foot of everyone's bed was a single, neatly folded Slytherin robe, one for every first year. Aileen dressed in hers, admiring the golden designs on the sleeves. Ziggy was perched upright, observing her as she changed.

" _Don't bite anyone, and don't eat the house elf while I'm gone. Okay_?" Aileen told Ziggy. " _I'll be back this afternoon_."

" _Bring me sssome meat, if you please_ ," Ziggy replied.

Aileen gave the snake a nod and headed into the common room, almost walking past the hanging lamps without seeing something extra hanging from one of them.

Halting mid-step, Aileen squinted up at the lamp dangling closest to her as it wobbled to and fro. From it, a small body hung, its skinny arms wrapped around the chain, its fingers clamped tightly onto it, and its legs kicking and trying to hug the orb that was the lamp's exterior, but failing. The house elf stopped wiggling when he spotted Aileen.

"Hello, Miss!" Allister said. "Allister hopes he didn't wake you! He hopes you had a good night's sleep, he does!"

"What are you doing up there?" Aileen asked.

"The students, Miss! The students told Allister to hang from the ceiling until they got back! They says that they need to test Allister's loyalty! They says that if Allister cannot hang from the ceiling for an entire day, then Allister is not a fit servant for them, Miss!" the house elf explained, nearly losing his grip on the chain and kicking into the air again, tightening his grasp with a death hold. "Allister does not want to disappoint, he doesn't! Allister is a good servant, he is! He will work well to earn his Galleon this month! The noble house of Slytherin deserves a faithful servant, it does! Allister will be a worthy servant!"

Aileen frowned up at him. The black stripes on the house elf's pillowcase outfit were more noticeable to her now; it made him look very much like a prisoner, and considering the way the Slytherins had been treating him, calling Allister a prisoner might as well have been a spot on assumption.

"Allister, they weren't being serious," Aileen told him. "They were messing with you. You know that, right?"

"Allister cannot say for certain, Miss! But Allister needs to obey orders! He must be faithful to the noble Slytherin House!" Allister replied. "It matters not if they tease Allister, Miss! Allister will take all orders given to him!"

"You don't have to let them treat you like that," Aileen said. "I'm pretty sure the teachers would stop them, if you told on them."

"Allister has no need to get the noble students into trouble, Miss! Allister is pleased with the way things are! It has been so for years!" Allister told her. "Allister obeys his masters with no regrets!"

"Your masters...?" Aileen wondered. "Technically, who _are_ your masters?"

"Allister's masters, Miss? Allister's masters consist of every Hogwarts employee, as well as every Slytherin student, Miss! I cannot disobey orders from my masters until new orders are given!"

"So, that includes me, right?"

"Why, yes it does, Miss! You are a part of the noble house of Slytherin! You are Allister's mas... er... mistress!"

"All right, then. I have an order for you."

"You do, Miss?"

"Yeah. Get down," Aileen stepped underneath the lamp from which Allister hung and held out her arms. "Come on, jump. I order you to jump."

"Jump?" Allister peeped down at her. He was hanging easily ten feet off of the ground.

"I'll catch you. You can trust me," Aileen assured.

"You needn't worry for Allister, Miss!" Allister squawked. "If Allister is to fall, then Allister is to fall!"

"Will you just shut up and jump? I'm gonna catch you because I don't want you to get hurt. Now, jump. I order you! Jump now!" Aileen demanded.

"As you wish, Miss!" Allister obliged, kicking off from the lamp and soaring downward.

The house elf preformed an accidental flip on his way down, landing sprawled in Aileen's arms. Aileen knelt as she caught him, capturing his momentum and cradling him like a lanky-limbed infant. Then, she stood, moved to the couch, and placed him on the cushions feet first, leaving him in a standing position. Allister swayed for a moment, then shook his head and let out a large breath.

"Thank you, Miss!" Allister exhaled. "You are too kind to a lowly house elf! Is there anything Allister can do to repay you?"

Aileen didn't respond. Was it really such a big deal that she helped him down from the ceiling where the other students had left him?

"Allister should repay you, Miss!" Allister took a few steps closer to her, careful not to fall from the couch. "How can Allister repay you?"

"You don't have to repay me! Geez!" Aileen responded.

"But Allister _wants_ to repay his debt!" The elf said. "Is there no way that Allister can assist you, Miss?"

Aileen opened her mouth, then hesitated.

"Actually, there is something," she said. "My pet python needs some food, but I won't have time to feed him during the day, because of my classes. Could you find him some kind of meat to eat, please?"

"But of course, Miss! Allister is pleased to assist!" Allister replied with a wide smile.

At that, Allister leaped over the arm of the couch and landed sloppily on the floor, sprinting off towards the exit. Aileen stared after him for a moment before realizing that she had forgotten her wand in the dormitory. She returned to her bed, retrieved her Sycamore from her nightstand, and slid it into the three fitted loops which resided inside of her left sleeve. Her wand sat snugly in her robe, lying perfectly against her arm and ready to be drawn at any moment. After giving Ziggy a few strokes on the snout, Aileen left the dormitory, exited the rectangular hallway of the common room, and spoke the words Purity Prevails to the stone wall at the hall's end, waiting for the stones to shift aside before exiting Slytherin House and wandering the halls of Hogwarts.

Aileen turned at least three corners in the maze-like corridors before admitting to herself that she had no idea where she was going. Where was the Great Hall, exactly? What route did Professor Crowley take when he escorted them to Slytherin House? She had no idea...

"Oy!" someone said from behind her. "Are you lost?"

Aileen spun around, coming face to face with one of the Hogwarts teachers. His dark, stringy hair was combed neatly off to the side, a brown leather jacket lying overtop of his vest and his slacks. He marched up to her and stopped. It only took her a few seconds to recognize him. This was the teacher who had called out the names of the first years on the previous night, Professor Longbottom.

"Um..." Aileen uttered, feeling her cheeks burn pink. "Yeah, kind of."

"It's okay. I used to get lost in here all the time. I still do, to be honest," Professor Longbottom replied with a laugh. "Come on. I'll take you to breakfast."

Professor Longbottom took the lead, and she followed him through the halls, making two rights and a left, eventually arriving at the entrance to the Great Hall. Before Aileen went inside to have breakfast, Professor Longbottom placed a hand on her shoulder, dug through one of his pockets, and pulled out a small, round object. He opened his hand and held it out for her to see; it was a compass, with the usual N, S, E, and W marked on it, though the arrow didn't stop moving like Aileen expected it was supposed to.

"This," Professor Longbottom said, "is a guidance compass. Do you know what a guidance compass is?"

Aileen shook her head. From what she understood, all compasses were meant to guide a person based on which direction they were facing. It seemed redundant to call any kind of compass a "guidance compass."

"I started making these about ten years ago. I have five of them in my office," Professor Longbottom told her. "A guidance compass is a compass that doesn't point north. It points you towards your current destination, whatever it might be. It's pretty useful for maneuvering around the school. Works well when you're trying to find a missing sock or something, too. It's handy for forgetful people like me. Here you go."

He placed the compass in her hand.

"Thank you," Aileen said.

"Oh, don't mention it," Longbottom replied. "Go and eat breakfast, now, before it's too late."

Aileen stepped into the Great Hall, the scent of bacon, eggs, cinnamon toast, and various other breakfast foods crawling up her nose as she did. Most of the students were seated at their tables, feasting on their morning meals and conversing with each other. The Great Hall had looked splendorous on the night of their arrival, but now, it was gorgeous, the sunlight and the clouds clearly visible over all of their heads and brightening the endless room. Aileen held up the compass and waited for the arrow to stop spinning. When the arrow finally became immobile, it was pointing ahead, but slightly to her right. Her eyes followed its direction, and then, she spotted Albus and Maxwell sitting side by side at the Gryffindor table. It seemed that Maxwell really was determined to sit with his friends, even if he had to break the rules. Why shouldn't she do the same?

Making sure that none of the teachers were paying much attention to her, Aileen stealthily strolled over to the Gryffindor table and sat on Maxwell's other side. Maxwell and Albus both smiled when they saw her. Neither of the boys were eating breakfast anymore; their plates sat empty and scooted away from them, and both of them were hunched over two pieces of parchment, each of them holding a quill.

"What're you guys writing?" Aileen asked them.

"I'm writing to my dad," Maxwell told her. "And my mom, and my uncle, and my grandmaw..."

"I'm writing my parents too," Albus said. "Telling them that I got into Gryffindor. Do you want to write to your parents? I have some extra parchment."

"Yeah, sure. Thanks," Aileen agreed.

Albus gave her a blank sheet of parchment and lent her one of his spare quills. At first, Aileen thought that she would need to borrow one of his bottles of ink, but then she realized that the quill was an ink pen, manufactured by Sullivan & Associates. It was a new company that flourished about fifteen years ago, and they were famous for selling a wide variety of modern objects, like ink pen quills, fashionable (yet dress code-friendly) school robes, new and improved broomsticks, and numerous other knickknacks and useful tools for the wizard world.

Aileen stared at her parchment, wondering what she ought to write. After a brief moment of thought, she began scribbling down the first things to come to her mind.

 _Hey, Mom and Dad. Guess what? I got everything I needed for school and I got a really cool wand. It's a wand made with the heartstring of a really rare dragon. The wand shop guy told me that it's one of the rarest wands in the world. Also, I'm a Slytherin! Maxwell got Hufflepuff, and we're about to start our first day of classes. I got a pet snake, and I almost had a pet bat, but it was a stray and it flew away from me before I could put it in a cage. I bought the snake in Diagon Alley after I realized I could talk to it. But anyway, I should wrap this up and eat breakfast before I have to go to class. I love you guys. See you for Christmas._

Aileen was satisfied with it, even though it was a bit short for a family letter. Still, she wanted to eat before she had to leave for class, and she didn't have all the time in the world to write. So, she folded the parchment three ways and pushed it aside, claiming a clean plate from the stack of dishes and scooping a pile of scrambled eggs onto it. She had shoveled half of the eggs into her mouth before she realized that Maxwell had taken her letter, as well as Albus's and his own, stuffed them in envelopes, and tied a tiny string around each of them.

When Aileen looked up from her plate after completing her breakfast, she noticed that something was on the table that didn't belong there. It was a big, fluffy owl, with black and white designs along its large body, and a pair of yellow eyes that might have looked huge if they didn't appear so tired. The sleepy owl stood on top of Maxwell's empty plate, watching the boy and waiting for him to finish tying the letters to his leg. Once Maxwell had succeeded in attaching his, Albus's, and Aileen's letters to the owl's foot, it hopped forward, nudged Maxwell on the nose, then spread its wings and flew away, exiting the Great Hall from one of its highest windows.

"Was that your owl?" Aileen asked Maxwell. "I didn't know you had an owl."

"He's not mine. He lives at my house. He's gonna deliver all of our mail for us." Maxwell said, giving his owl a goodbye wave, even though the owl was already gone. "Bye, Donovan!"

"You named your owl Donovan?" Albus said.

"No, I didn't name him. His mother named him," Maxwell replied.

"Right," Aileen said. "Sure she did..."

"Look what he brought me!" Maxwell exclaimed, holding up the most current issue of the Daily Prophet. "My uncle likes me to read the news. He says it's good for me to keep up with current events. Boooring..."

Instead of reading the issue, he tossed it aside and helped himself to another serving of toast. Aileen picked up the Daily Prophet, intrigued by the moving pictures of muggles with cameras on the front page, as well as the headlines, which read; **MYSTERIOUS XYLER STRIKES A THIRD TIME**.

Aileen studied the picture very closely before bothering to read the article. In the photo, the muggles appeared to be taking pictures of a small shop, which looked like an ordinary clothing store, but the sign on the top of the building, reading Sullivan & Associates, made it clear that the shop was a front for a wizarding store. There was a large window on the front of this shop, and the muggles were snapping photographs of the broken glass. On first impression, it looked to be a story about a simple break-in, but who was Xyler? And why had he made the front lines with this simple crime? She had to read the story.

 **That's right, witches and wizards. It seems that, even after the murder of wandmaker Emerick Nixxon, and even after the famous duel in the streets of London involving Aurors Richard Lancaster, Sandy Brooks, and the famous Harry Potter, the mysterious dark wizard known as "Xyler" is still at large, having evaded arrest at least three times on record. Jason Stein, the manager of this particular branch of Sullivan & Associates, states that he did not fight with Xyler, as the hooded criminal entered his shop, disarmed him, and proceeded to raid his secret stores of magical artifacts. Jason reveals that nothing was stolen, which leaves the experts to suspect that Xyler was, and possibly still is, looking for something specific. Interviews with local muggles give us little details on the matter...**

Aileen lost interest in the rest of the article, as the rest of it didn't seem to hold any important information. It was interesting that a dark wizard was at large and frequently evading arrest, but even more interesting that the name "Harry Potter" had appeared in this story. James Potter had bragged about being Harry Potter's son. Aileen didn't know much about Harry Potter, but one thing was for sure; he was certainly a big deal among the wizard community, from what she could tell.

"Hey, Albus," Aileen said. "This article says that your dad fought a dark wizard in the streets of London."

"Oh, yeah," Albus replied. "That happened about a year ago. Usually, my dad doesn't have to make arrests or take anyone down anymore. But, from what I hear, this new bad guy is really tough, so once they got a lead on him, they called on some of their strongest Aurors to make the arrest in Diagon Alley, including my dad. The bad guy got away, though."

"It says that he struck again," Aileen told him, holding up the Daily Prophet.

Albus took the paper and read over the article for himself.

"Weird," Albus said. "I wonder what he's looking for. Hey, there's a story in here about my mom's old Quidditch team..."

At the front of the Great Hall, Headmaster Arius stood before everyone, making a few echoing claps ring throughout the room and grasping everyone's attention. Once most of the students had gone quiet and turned their attention onto him, he made a swift wrist movement, and from behind his podium flew a vast collection of papers. The papers flew all over the Great Hall, landing on the tabletops in front of every student in the room.

"Hold onto those sheets, kids," Professor Arius instructed. "Those are your class schedules for the year. First years and second years, you'll find that your schedules are all identical. First years all have the same classes together, and second years share their classes as well. Third years, fourth years, and everyone above - you'll find your individual schedules mapped out with your chosen electives on them. Fifth years, I suggest you talk with your head of house to discuss your N.E.W.T.S..."

Aileen took the sheet of paper that had landed in front of her and gave it a quick onceover.

 **Monday - Transfiguration, Herbology, Defense Against the Dark Arts**

 **Tuesday - History of Magic, Charms, Astronomy**

 **Wednesday - Potions, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts**

 **Thursday - Transfiguration, Herbology, Defense Against the Dark Arts**

 **Friday - History of Magic, Potions, Flying**

Soon after the schedules were delivered to the students, people began to rise from their seats and leave in order to find their first class of the day. Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus did much the same, Aileen leading them out of the Great Hall and following whatever direction her guidance compass would point her, not even thinking to simply follow the other first years.

The transfiguration classroom was a beautifully lit room with all of its curtains pulled to the side, so to let the sunlight in, reflecting off of all the shiny artifacts that aligned the counter near the wall. This class was taught by a woman in a decorative purple gown and a large hat to match, her face and arms blotched with dark patches due to some kind of illness or skin condition. Despite this, the woman didn't seem discouraged to accessorize; from her ears dangled long, golden earrings in the shape of owls, with diamonds for eyes. Each of her slender fingers carried some kind of thick, colorful ring, and around her neck was a variety of necklaces, chokers, and jewels. Her name was on the board in cursive, reading; Mrs. Truman.

Professor Truman spoke to the class for nearly the entire first period, introducing them to how her class would work, when they would be using magic, and how often they would be quizzed on her lessons, as well as what she would look for when grading them on their performances. Aileen figured that the class would eventually become interesting, but as of today, when all of the teachers would be giving the _this is how my class works_ speech, nobody would actually find the time to start lessons on spells.

After this class was Herbology, which took place in an impressively spacious greenhouse. Professor Longbottom taught this class, and after his speech about his teaching methods (which took about half an hour, contrary to Professor Truman, who used up her entire class period with this speech), he slowly walked along the walls of the greenhouse, pointing out each individual plant and naming them for the students, which, compared to the first class, was actually somewhat interesting. At the end of this class, some of the students thought to ask the professor about his time as an Auror, and Longbottom agreed to tell some of his most exciting stories until lunch time.

When the time came, many of the students didn't want to leave Herbology, as Professor Longbottom hadn't finished his tale about the burglar who turned out to be a spectre. He promised to finished the story during their next class and ushered them all out of the greenhouse. Once everyone reached the Great Hall once again, Aileen and Maxwell promptly sat themselves at the Gryffindor table again, hoping that none of the teachers would notice, and began to scarf down the fried chicken and chips in front of them.

"Where's your cousin?" Aileen finally thought to ask Albus. "Your cousin, Rose. Where is she?"

"She was sorted into Ravenclaw. She's at their table," Albus told her.

"She should come sit with us," Maxwell commented. "I mean, we're all breaking the rules, right? Who's gonna notice if one more person does it?"

"Excuse me?" A light, calm voice spoke from behind them, making Maxwell, Aileen, and Albus all stop eating at once.

Aileen glimpsed up, seeing the smiling face of the young, white-haired headmaster staring back at her, his hands cupped together, his stance relaxed, and his grin portraying a subtle hint of amusement.

"You have some beautiful threads there," Professor Arius said, grasping the edge of Aileen's sleeve and gently rubbing his thumb on the gold designs. "Looks very Slytherinley. You don't look like you belong at this table, you know."

Aileen's mouth fell open.

"Lucky for you, I'm too busy carrying on with my busy schedule to notice," Professor Arius added with a smirk. "Have a nice lunch, you little wonders, you."

Then, the headmaster sauntered off, leaving the three of them utterly speechless for about a full minute.

"I think he's crazy," Albus mumbled.

"Me too," Aileen agreed.

"I like him," Maxwell said. "He's cool, just letting us break the rules like that."

"I like him too, but I still think he's crazy," Aileen told him.

"Hey," James, who was sitting across from them and only just noticed their presence, interjected. "Why're you sitting at the Gryffindor table, Slytherin?"

"Because I _want_ to," Aileen replied coldly. "Problem?"

James and Fred exchanged snickers. Aileen scoffed and ignored them.

After most of the chicken within their reach had been devoured, many of the students began to yell and clap, their attention shifting upwards, where two ghosts - the Bloody Baron and Nearly Headless Nick - were having at one another, partaking in a rapid sword fight, which, of course, wasn't actually hurting either one of them. When the ghosts finished their performance, the students were prompted to leave for their last class of the day, and all of the first years departed the Great Hall to find the Defense Against the Dark Arts class.

The first years piled into the classroom, and Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus sat in a row of three in the front, while Scorpius, Erika, and many of the Slytherins sat themselves in the back. In the front of this room was the teacher's desk and the many portraits along the wall, but unlike most of the classrooms, this one contained a rather unique staircase which led to the teacher's office upstairs. Professor Crowley stood at the top of his balcony, leaning on the stone rail and watching until each first year had found their seat.

"First of all," Professor Crowley began in his low, soothing voice. "There will be a test each Friday, sometimes a written one consisting of ten questions, and sometimes a demonstrative one, which relies on your physical performance of the spells you will learn in this class. I have all the books that you will need on my shelves. The only thing you will need for this class is your wand."

He glided slowly down the stairs as he spoke.

"Now," he reached the bottom of the stairs, made his way around the rail, and leaned on his desk. "If, and only if, you promise to abide by my instructions, to keep your wands held away from your fellow students, and you promise not to damage anything in my classroom, then... I will give each and every one of you permission to use your wands, one at a time, just to show me what you can do."

Many of the students traded faces, some of them whispering to each other. On the first day of school, when most of the teachers were simply giving verbal lectures, none of them expected to be using their wands so soon.

"Come on, come to the front of the class, whoever would like to go first," Professor Crowley said. "I won't waste all of our time by talking your ears off. And, I know that every first year demonstrates some kind of power whenever their wand chooses them. I find that seeing what my students are capable of determines their effectiveness better than their grades will. So, come on. Form a line, if you like, and stand in the open space here, in front of my desk..."

A few of the first years hesitantly rose from their seats and formed a line as they were told. Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus were only a couple of students away from the front of the line. The person at the very front, Rose Weasley, pulled out her wand and held it upright, giving it a gentle swing. A shining red ribbon shot out of the wand's end and spun across the room.

"Hm. That little ribbon spun in the exact motion that you moved your wrist. Did you notice?" Professor Crowley said to Rose. "I imagine that you pay great attention to detail, and you'll be doing that more and more as you learn more incantations. That's a helpful advantage. All right, who's next?"

Next in line was a short, chubby Hufflepuff boy. He revealed his wand and jabbed it into the air, and the wand squirted out a stream of water, which created a large puddle in the middle of the classroom floor.

"Interesting," Professor Crowley remarked. "Using water suggests that you're more defensive and adaptable, rather than offensive and unwavering. That can be used to your advantage or your disadvantage. Next up!"

When the plump Hufflepuff boy waddled to the back of the line, Professor Crowley waved his wand at the puddle, muttering "Evanesco," and at once, all of the water vanished into thin air. Next in line was Albus, who wove his wand in a swift swing, and then, a bright light shone into the room following in the direction that the wand had swung, dissipating when it reached Professor Crowley's desk.

"Light?" Crowley observed. "Light is a positive omen for an honorable soul. Not surprising, considering you're a Potter."

Albus, not entirely thrilled about the professor's synopsis, moved to the back of the line.

Maxwell stepped forward this time, his Holly clutched in both hands and his bangs hanging even lower than usual. He was noticeably nervous about being expected to preform magic in front of the whole class. After a few seconds, he raised his wand and gave it a flick.

A stream of black smoke emitted from the end of Maxwell's wand, quickly engulfing the entire room and rendering everyone unable to see a foot in front of themselves.

 _"Evanesco!"_

Professor Crowley waved his wand once more, and in an instant, all of the smoke vanished.

Everyone's eyes were on Maxwell now, and his cheeks turned a deep scarlet.

"Calm yourself," Professor Crowley said, resting a hand on Maxwell's shoulder. "Your nerves are rattled. Try not to feel so anxious. Take a deep breath and try again."

Maxwell said nothing. He took in a hefty breath and tried to force himself into composure. Seconds later, he flicked his wand again, and this time, a thin, dancing rainbow twirled out of the wand's tip and flew into the air, similar to the way it had back in Ollivander's shop. Maxwell flashed a relieved smile as he watched the rainbow spin and twirl until it hit the ceiling and vanished.

"I've seen your type before," Professor Crowley told him, wearing a half-smile. "Your magical abilities are deeply connected to your emotions. That could be dangerous... but it could be equally helpful as well. Now, who's next?"

This time, it was Aileen's turn. Her hand crept into her sleeve and pulled out the wand of Leviathan, and she waited until Professor Crowley backed away before daring to swing her wand. If this display turned out to be anything like the last one, then she needed to point her wand as far away from everyone else as possible.

Aileen swished her Sycamore, and as she expected, a burst of fire exploded out of the wand and grew into a steady fireball the higher it ascended.

Professor Crowley raised his Redwood wand yet again. _"Evanesco!"_

Before the mountain of fire could reach the ceiling, the professor's spell succeeded in making the flames evaporate into nothingness.

"Passionate, very passionate!" Professor Crowley told Aileen. "You don't see incantations like that every day, not from a first year! I hope you'll be able to control it. Okay, next up!"

Aileen went to the back of the line, standing a few feet away from where the line actually ended, so to keep a better view of the front of the room. So far, this was her favorite class, and she loved how Professor Crowley had started their Defense Against the Dark Arts experience for the year. Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus watched and swapped comments about each student's display of magic. When Scorpius reached the front of the line, he sent a golden snake out of his wand, and the false reptile twisted into a tightly constricted knot before disappearing. Erika, who possessed a unique wand which was carved in the shape of a viper, the outer half of the wand extending from the wooden snake's mouth, sent a powerful disintegrating spell across the room, which Professor Crowley had to quickly counter before it would destroy all of the portraits across from the students.

The time flew by, and once everyone had demonstrated their magic, there was only ten minutes left of class time, and Professor Crowley ordered them to return to their seats. He leaned on his desk again, scooted back, and sat on top of it, crossing his wiry legs and giving his students an approving grin.

"Was that fun, or what?" he said. "Now I hope you're hyped, because throughout the year, you'll be learning things far beyond what you've done here today. Not to mention, that rush of performing powerful magic? That's a good incentive that might push you to join the dueling club in the evenings. I'm in charge of the dueling club, you see. I won't be organizing those meetings until next week, but I'll be signing everyone up until then. If you're interested in the dueling club, then all you've got to do is stop by after class, and I'll add you to the list. Now... since none of you have anywhere particular to be after this class, I'm going to go ahead and dismiss you early. Go co-mingle, or hang out, or whatever you call it."

The students stood to leave, most of them discussing the magic that they had performed and comparing their abilities. Maxwell and Albus were ready to leave as well, but they stopped when they noticed that Aileen wasn't following them. When most of the students had left the room, Aileen was still standing by her desk, contemplating on whether she wanted to join the dueling club or not.

"What're you waiting for?" Maxwell asked her.

"I'm thinking," she said. "I think I want to join the dueling club."

"You do?" Albus responded. "Are you sure? Do you know how do do anything besides shoot fire? You could seriously hurt someone."

"I think it sounds fun," Maxwell said. "Can I join too?"

"Well, yeah. Why're you asking me? Let's just do it," Aileen said, spinning on her heel and marching up to Professor Crowley's desk with both boys following her close behind.

Professor Crowley, who heard everything that they had said, grabbed a clipboard from the side of his desk and prepared his quill to write.

"Three for the dueling club?" he inquired, looking between the trio. "Names?"

"Aileen O'Heidin," Aileen stated.

"Maxwell Connelly," Maxwell said.

"Er... Albus Potter," Albus reluctantly told him.

"And me as well." Scorpius Malfoy approached them from behind, planting his hands on his sides. "I want to be in the dueling club too. Scorpius Malfoy."

Professor Crowley jotted down all of their names. Aileen and Scorpius met eyes by accident, but they both shared a certain determination in their stares, so they were sure to lock glares for a couple of long seconds before they were interrupted.

"Erika Sayre," said the dark-haired Slytherin girl, who also lingered behind after the others had left. "I'd like to join, too."

"Very well... there we are," Professor Crowley said, adding Erika's name to the list. "Aileen, Maxwell, Albus, Scorpius, and Erika. You're the only first years I've gotten on board so far. We'll see how long that lasts. Very well, then, you five. Off you go. Go enjoy your afternoon."

The five of them left the classroom, and Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus were sure to avoid Scorpius and Erika on their way out. They didn't speak until they were three long hallways away from the room.

"That was _so_ much fun," Aileen said gleefully. "I didn't think we'd have that much fun on the first day. That was wicked!"

"What is that dueling club gonna be like?" Maxwell pondered. "I don't want to fight that scary Slytherin girl."

"I dunno. I wasn't even sure if I wanted to join that club," Albus replied. "I mean, it does sound like fun, but it seems like all of the teachers are expecting me to do something amazing, like I'm supposed to be a prodigy just because I'm a Potter."

"Just ignore them," Aileen advised. "Like I said before, they can't choose anything for you, so why worry about it? Just do what you want."

The three of them emerged in the opening that was the clock tower's courtyard, a beautiful, outdoor segment of the school where the students would often spent their breaks loitering, talking, and horse playing. Right now, it was empty, which inspired Aileen to do something both very exciting and very impulsive.

Aileen sprinted ahead of Maxwell and Albus, halting in the center of the courtyard, holding her wand up high, and thrusting it upwards in one hard motion.

For the third time since she obtained the wand of Leviathan, a gust of fire erupted from the wand, this one bigger than the last two. The fire raged and rose into the air, and Aileen didn't sever it; she wanted to see it expand, to see it reach into the sky, like the fiery hand of mankind extending into the heavens, perhaps intending to scorch God himself.


	6. Suspicions on the Rise

A flood of nasty swear words escaped her mouth as Aileen stumbled back into the common room, now with no regard for discretion or stealth.

Allister squeaked and flipped out of the trunk when Aileen darted back into the room. A couple of the Slytherin girls raised their heads tiredly, looked around, and went back to sleep. Aileen wasn't sure where to go or what to do now. There was a monster - a real, living monster - in the hallway outside, and she had no idea what it was or how it had gotten there. Her heart hammering and her breath rapid, Aileen held up her compass, tightened her hand around her wand, and tried to prepare herself to return to the hallway. She had to tell one of the teachers, and she couldn't do it from in here.

"Something is the matter, Miss?" Allister said quietly. "Has something given Miss a fright?"

"There's... something outside," Aileen panted. "There's a monster outside!"

"A monster?" Allister repeated. "Is Miss certain there's a monster outside? Hogwarts is a safe place, Miss. Hogwarts never has monsters. No monsters could get into Hogwarts if they tried, Miss. Hogwarts is the safest place in the world!"

Aileen gulped. Her mother and father had often told her the very same thing about Hogwarts. This monster, whatever it was, hadn't gotten into the castle on its own. Someone must have brought it inside, slipped it past all of Hogwarts' security charms and let it loose in the school. But who, and why?

"Allister, I want you to go to the hallway in the common room and stand guard. Okay? Can you do that?" Aileen asked the elf. "I'm gonna go try to find the headmaster's office. I have to tell Professor Arius about this. I want you to guard the entrance to the common room and don't let anything inside. Don't let anyone in unless they're a teacher or a student. Alright?"

"Is Allister permitted to use magic, Miss?"

"Aye. Whenever I give you an order, just assume that I'm giving you permission to use magic."

"Yes, Miss."

Ziggy had risen from the trunk beside Allister, his slit shaped pupils swapping between the two of them curiously.

"There's a monster in the school. Will you come with me, Ziggy?" Aileen said to the snake. "I might need your help."

Ziggy said nothing, but responded by slithering out of the trunk, up her legs, and coiling around her shoulders.

Aileen went to the common room with Allister following by her heels.

 _"Purity Prevails."_

When the stones shifted aside, Aileen took in a deep, anxious breath, almost not wanting to create a fireball for light again, lest she meet eyes with the mysterious monster in the hallway. Still, she couldn't travel the castle in the darkness without lighting her way. Her palm stretched out, and she created a tiny flame once more before stepping into the hallway again, her wand at the ready, her pulse steadily quickening.

Allister remained behind as he was ordered. Aileen tried to walk with a pep in her step, turning left instead of right this time, hoping that she wouldn't cross paths with the monster again.

 _Take me to the headmaster's office,_ she thought sternly, staring at the compass as she clutched it with her wand. _I need to get to the headmaster. Take me there._

Aileen followed the compass arrow, making only two turns and hardly able to see more than two feet ahead. After a little while of walking, her nervousness started to fade, but she didn't let her guard down even for a second. That red eyed thing could have been anywhere, around any corner...

At last, after carefully venturing up some of the staircases (many of which would move on occasion) and walking down two more long hallways, Aileen came to a stop in front of a massive, elegant bird-like structure, which was wrapped around a set of spiraling stairs. The compass arrow was pointed directly at the statue and its staircase.

"What're you doing out of bed?" someone asked from the hallway behind her, making Aileen jump so hard she nearly fell over.

When she turned, the flame in her hand went out, but she was still able to see. The teacher who had called out to her held his wand out up like a torch, the tip of it brightened with a ball of light.

"Why are you out of bed?" Professor Longbottom repeated. "And what's with the snake?"

Ziggy tightened himself around Aileen's neck.

"There's something in the school," Aileen told him. "It's a... a monster, with red eyes, and it looks like a giant shadow or something..."

"A monster?" Professor Longbottom said. "A giant shadow? Doesn't sound like any creature I've ever heard of."

"But I _saw_ it!" Aileen proclaimed. "I saw it in the hallway! I swear!"

Professor Longbottom approached her, his face grim.

"All right," he said. "Step on the staircase. We'll go talk to the headmaster."

Aileen started to climb the stairs, but Longbottom grasped her by the arm, stopping her. He then raised his wand at the statue.

 _"Recees Pieces."_

Suddenly, the entire thing moved. The staircase began to spin slowly upward, carrying them both up to the headmaster's office.

Aileen gave Professor Longbottom an odd look.

"Recees Pieces?" she said.

"His passwords are usually his favorite muggle candies," he explained. "Recees Pieces are actually quite good, in my opinion."

The staircase moved upward, and once it came to a stop, Aileen and Professor Longbottom were facing the doorway of the headmaster's office. Every object that was left behind by Dumbledore and McGonagall was still on the walls and shelves, gigantic portraits of all the headmasters still hanging side by side. The elevated cage which once contained Dumbledore's pet was gone; Headmistress McGonagall had taken over care of Fawkes, and after she left the school, she took the phoenix with her. Rather than a phoenix, on top of the desk across the room was not only the professor's own artifacts and personal belongings, but also a four foot long, stretched out, sleeping creature that appeared to be snakelike, its deep blue scales shining in the dim light, though this creature had limbs, arms and legs extended and wings wrapped around its body for warmth. The small dragon perked up when it heard the movement of the staircase, and when it opened its eyes, Aileen and Longbottom were able to see its gaze more clearly than anything else in the room, its eyes a bright neon green.

The young dragon opened its mouth, letting out a faint, high pitched squeal.

Moments later, Professor Arius appeared from behind a bookshelf. The bookshelf was pushed open as he stepped out from behind it, and he closed it as easily as closing a door, his body draped with white and green striped pajama robes and his white hair completely screwed up.

"What are you moaning about, Zeus?" Arius said to the dragon, releasing a yawn.

The headmaster blinked, noticing Aileen and Longbottom.

"Sorry to bother you, sir," Professor Longbottom said. "This student... she says she saw something in the hallway."

"Something in the hallway? Well, there are a lot of things in the hallways. What sort of thing did she see? Something normal, like a ghost? Or something that shouldn't be there?" Professor Arius replied.

"It was a monster," Aileen told him. "I... I don't know what it was. It looked like a shadow, and it had big red eyes, and fangs, and... and it just appeared out of nowhere."

Professors Longbottom and Arius met eyes, seeming to share the same thoughts.

"I've never heard of anything like it," Professor Arius determined. "There aren't any magical creatures that fit such a description. It must be a shapeshifter of some kind."

"A boggart?" Professor Longbottom suggested.

"Perhaps," Professor Arius nodded. "It's the start of a new school year. Some of the older students are likely pulling pranks, probably the seventh years. I wouldn't put it past them to smuggle a boggart into the school as a joke."

"What's a boggart?" Aileen asked them.

"It's harmless. Well… usually," the headmaster answered. "A boggart is a shapeshifter that becomes whatever its beholder most fears. Although, I've never heard of a boggart turning into a red eyed shadowy entity before. That's new."

Professor Arius marched forward, folding his arms behind his back and looking over Aileen in a wondering way.

"What is your name?" he asked.

"Aileen," Aileen replied.

"By any chance, Aileen," Arius said. "Are you afraid of the dark?"

Aileen didn't answer. She hadn't thought about it before. Usually, whenever she would wander around at nighttime back home, her father's property was lightened up by the carnival lights. Maybe she was afraid of the dark. Before now, she'd never wandered around in the darkness before. Was that it? Did the boggart take the shape of simple darkness to frighten her?

"What were you doing outside of your dormitory after dark, in any case?" Arius questioned.

Again, Aileen didn't reply. After finding the monster in the hallway, she'd almost forgotten about her original task. Someone else had left the dormitory, and on a whim, Aileen had left to follow them, to figure out who they were and where they were going. It didn't seem like a good enough excuse to give the teachers, so, she kept her mouth shut.

Zeus the dragon flapped its wings and bobbed into the air, landing on Professor Arius' shoulders. Ziggy, still sitting comfortable on Aileen's shoulders, raised his head and flickered his tongue at the dragon. Zeus responded by letting out another squeak.

Arius smiled at the creatures, then turned his eyes on Aileen again.

"Don't wander the castle at night," he told her straightly. "I should put you in detention. It's too early in the school year for you to start getting into trouble. Five points will be taken from Slytherin House. If this happens again, the consequences will be _much_ more severe. Do I make myself clear?"

Aileen nodded glumly.

"Now, Professor Longbottom, please escort Aileen back to her house. When you're done, wake Trocar and tell him that there's a boggart loose in the castle. We'll need to have that dealt with as soon as possible," Arius said.

"Yes sir," Professor Longbottom agreed. "Come on."

Aileen didn't look back to see Arius wave them off. The walk back to Slytherin House was quiet and uneventful, and the whole way, Aileen couldn't help but wonder why a boggart had appeared in the hall, who had left the dormitory after hours, and if the two incidents were, possibly, connected. When she entered the common room, she dismissed Allister and returned to her bed, allowing Ziggy to curl up in her trunk again. The bed three spaces away from Aileen's was still empty, and Aileen plopped onto her mattress, her racing mind lulling her to sleep and plunging her into a series of bizarre, boggart-filled dreams.

The next day was a class free Saturday, and Aileen spent the majority of her time traveling the castle and visiting the courtyards with Maxwell and Albus, telling them the fanciful tale of the shadowy boggart she'd seen in the hallway. When they sat themselves on the side of the wall aligning the clock tower's courtyard, Aileen explained that she had left the common room to find someone else who had left the dormitory. Ziggy was wrapped around her neck like a scarf, and the weather was finally beginning to cool down outside, making the three of them quite comfortable as they chatted.

"Maybe they just had to go to the bathroom?" Albus said. "Some people leave their dormitories in the middle of the night if they have to go to the bathroom really badly."

"No, they were gone too long," Aileen replied. "I spent at least half an hour looking for the headmaster's office, and when I got back to the dormitory, her bed was still empty. And anyway, the Slytherin dormitories have bathrooms. She wouldn't have had to leave the dormitory to use the bathroom."

"Who do you think it was?" Maxwell asked half interestedly, swishing and flicking his wand in an attempt to practice the wand movement for Expelliarmus.

"I don't know." Aileen said thoughtfully. "I don't really know anyone in Slytherin House yet."

Albus gave Aileen a subtle pat on the side, pointing directly ahead, where a few students were walking in a group. Trailing behind this group was a loner Slytherin girl, the blue haired, unspoken Erika. Aileen hadn't noticed until now, but it appeared that Erika, too, had a pet snake. On her shoulders was an albino, pink eyed cobra, one that had probably been either very well trained or defanged, as one bite from it would likely sicken or kill a man. Erika didn't look up as she walked; she was occupied with reading a battered, coverless textbook.

Aileen was about to ask why Albus had grabbed her attention, but she pieced it together seconds later. Could Erika be the one who had sneaked out of the dormitory last night? Erika was, as far as Aileen could tell, quiet, mysterious, and unsocial. As far as fitting a suspicious profile, Erika might as well have been a perfectly suspicious cookie cut flawlessly from a shady cookie cutter. And, if every noise she'd heard in the dead of night throughout the week had been a result of her sneaking out, then why was she doing it? Why leave the dormitory every single night? What could have been her motive?

For the remainder of the weekend, out of boredom, the three of them spent a lot of time conversing in the Great Hall during breakfast, lunch, and dinner, avoiding the place whenever study hall was in progress and deciding that, on the afternoon of Sunday, they had nothing better to do than to watch Quidditch tryouts. First years weren't typically allowed broomsticks or to participate in the tryouts, but it was quite enjoyable to watch the older students whiz about on broomsticks, knocking the bludgers around and ending the tryouts by chasing each other off the grounds as if playing airborne tag.

Professors Crowley, Longbottom, and Truman swept the castle clean every morning and evening, ordering Mr. Filch to inform them if he were to see the runaway boggart anywhere on the school grounds. And, with Quidditch trials holding the attention of many of the older students, Professor Crowley decided to extend the deadline of his dueling club's signup process, meaning that Aileen would have to wait even longer before she could participate in the club. It didn't matter much to her; for the next couple of weeks, Aileen found herself overjoyed at practicing new spells. History of Magic wasn't particularly interesting to her, and Potions wasn't her strongest subject, but Charms, Transfiguration, and Defense Against the Dark Arts were the most fun in her opinion, as she was actually allowed to use her wand and preform magic in those classes. Flying was fun as well, and Mad'am Hooch II had moved on to teaching the students how to control their ascending by the time they had spent a month in Hogwarts.

As the days went by, Aileen would try to catch Allister when he was alone in the Slytherin common room, careful not to speak where any of the other students would hear her. "Do me a favor, will you?" She would sometimes say to the elf. "If you find yourself awake at night, keep watch for me, and tell me if anyone sneaks out. If you see anybody leave the house at nighttime, I want you to tell me about it the next day, and tell me who it was. Just... don't bring it up in front of anyone else, all right?"

And each time Aileen would ask this of him, Allister would reply eagerly and affirmatively. "But of course, Miss! Anything for you, Miss!"

On the fourth Friday of the month, Aileen arrived to the dormitory after a particularly fun Flying class during which Maxwell and Albus decided to race across the field, their feet barely hovering above the grass as they shot through the air. Maxwell won, but only because he lost control of his broom, and he barely managed to skid to a stop before hitting the wall. Afterwards, Maxwell vomited into the grass, feeling queasy after flying through the air at such a speed. Albus had brought himself to a smooth stop, and Mad'am Hooch thought to remark on his spectacular broom control. "Just like a Potter," she'd said. Albus didn't care for the comment.

In the last few weeks, Aileen hadn't received any reports from Allister, despite having put him on watch nearly every single night. This time, however, when she walked into the common room around six in the evening, there were no students around, and she heard something clatter to the floor in the girl's dormitory the moment she stepped in. Seconds later, Allister came darting out of the dormitory, leaping onto the couch and clasping his hands together, looking up at Aileen as if he very much wanted to say something.

Aileen raised her thin brows at him, waiting for him to speak.

Allister hopped in place, his lips sealed shut, but he made a lot of muffled groaning noises, almost like he was trying to speak without opening his mouth.

Aileen looked dumbfounded.

"What's wrong with you?" she asked.

Allister mumbled behind his lips, still not sounding coherent at all.

Aileen examined him.

"Did... did someone order you not to talk?" she asked after about a minute of thought.

Allister nodded vigorously.

"Okay. I order you to talk," Aileen said. "You have permission to say whatever you want."

Then, Allister's mouth burst open and he inhaled a series of large gasps as if he'd been holding his breath.

"It was last night, Miss! It happened again last night!" Allister exclaimed, turning his head and making sure that nobody was eavesdropping. He then raised his hand to his mouth, leaned closer, and began to whisper. "Last night, Allister saw her, Miss! It was Erika, just as you suspected, Miss! Allister saw her leave at two o' clock in the morning!"

"You were awake at two in the morning?" Aileen replied.

"Why yes, Miss! Allister tried to stay awake at all hours of the day, Miss, so that he could follow your orders explicitly, Miss!"

"Really? You didn't have to do that."

"But Allister wanted to, Miss!"

"So, you saw Erika sneak out? And she told you not to talk?"

"No, it wasn't Erika who gave that order, Miss!" Allister told her. "It was young Sir Scorpius!"

Aileen narrowed her eyes at him. "Scorpius told you not to talk? Why would he do that?"

"Well, Allister suspects that he didn't want to be caught sneaking out of his dormitory, Miss," Allister answered. "He followed Miss Erika out of Slytherin House, Miss. He saw Allister on his way out, and he ordered Allister not to speak, Miss. Allister expects he was trying to cover his tracks, Miss, so not to be caught sneaking out!"

Aileen went quiet. The more Allister spoke, the more she became convinced that something very strange was going on just under her nose. This whole situation stank to high heaven. Erika was sneaking out regularly, and Scorpius was, too? For what purpose? Were they working together, or was it simply by coincidence that Scorpius sneaked out on one of the same nights that Erika had? And what was the point of it all? Did it have something to do with the boggart on the loose? Who could say?

It was tempting to order Allister to wake her the moment that Erika rose from bed again tonight. Aileen wanted very much to follow after her again, but she feared that she might find the boggart a second time. Not only that, but Arius had threatened to penalize her if she was caught outside after hours again. Each house of Hogwarts had a point system for a yearly competition, and while Aileen herself didn't much care for it, she assumed that her fellow Slytherins wouldn't appreciate it if their points were to suffer due to her rule breaking.

As she thought of ways to intercept Erika somehow, an idea sprung into her mind. She smiled at Allister.

Allister's ears poked up like those of a roused German Shepherd.

"Allister," Aileen said. "You're allowed to leave the house at nighttime, right?"

"Of course, Miss, so long as it's necessary for Allister to follow an order," Allister replied.

"Next time she sneaks out, I want you to follow her," Aileen uttered mischievously. "I want you to follow her, stay hidden, and tell me everything she does while she's out. Alright?"

"Of course, Miss," Allister accepted the request.

"And if you see Scorpius again, tell me anything he does, too. And stay hidden from both of them, if you can."

"Yes, Miss. Allister will do his best!"

Aileen patted the elf on the head, went to the small, enclosed bathrooms of the dormitory, took a quick shower, and crawled into her bed. Allister had supplied Ziggy with a long beef steak, and the snake sat under her bed, sucking on the raw meat and staying as still as a statue. The night was peaceful, and she dreamed of a humongous Halloween dance in the Great Hall, where Maxwell had dressed like a wolf and Albus had placed a pair of round glasses on his face after scribbling a lightning shaped scar onto his forehead with a red marker. As usual, she spent her weekend with Maxwell and Albus, practicing their spells and conveniently forgetting that Professors Flitwick and Hendon had given them homework. In the clock tower's courtyard, the trio was intercepted during their yells of Expelliarmus by Fred and James, who were quick to show off how wonderfully they had mastered the spells that Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus were still trying to learn. Fred disarmed James, and James responded by making an unnecessarily flashy roll over the ground, snatching his wand up, and returning the Expelliarmus incantation, which instead of disarming Fred, succeeded in throwing his entire body backwards and out of the courtyard. James and Fred cleared the spot in a hurry so not to be caught tossing spells around outside of class, but Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus didn't go anywhere, the three of them too busy dying of laughter to move.

The next week crept by more slowly, and Tuesday afternoon, the trio returned to the courtyard after examining the nearby halls and paths to ensure no teachers were watching. They wouldn't have a chance to get started on their usual game of spell casting, because the moment they stepped onto the clearing, a huge figure appeared across from them.

"Oy," Hagrid said, waving a big hand at them. "Come 'round fer tea, kiddo?"

His gaze fell on Albus.

"Sorry I ain't been able to invite you 'round sooner," Hagrid added. "That boggart's got the teachers all riled, been runnin' around and trying to set up simple traps fer it. Arius is keepin' us all on high alert, y'know. Come 'round fer tea?"

"Er... yeah, sure," Albus agreed.

"Got something fer you, too, Mr. Connelly," Hagrid said to Maxwell.

"Me?" Maxwell asked, taken aback.

"E'up. Yer dad came 'round yesterday, wanted to wait around to see yeh, but he had somewhere to be, couldn't stick around long. Good man, he is. He's been workin' with your dad lately, so I heard." Hagrid shifted his eyes from Maxwell back to Albus. "They've been gettin' all the best Aurors together to find that Xyler bloke, and good ol' Harry is the head of the department. Ross is one of their best. Been workin' alongside Harry for a few weeks now. Good team they'll make."

"But why did my dad come here?" Maxwell asked curiously.

"Yeh didn't think he'd send that pet o' yours through the mail, didja?" Hagrid replied with a chuckle. "As if they'd let you keep that little tyke in the school."

"Julie's here?" Maxwell said excitedly, beaming as if he'd just won the lottery.

"E'up." Hagrid nodded. "And the little tyke'll be stayin' at my place. You'll have to come 'round if ya' wanna see her. Reckon you wouldn't mind feeding her, too. Not like I mind, but I got a fair bit on my plate. Got plenty o' creatures of my own to look after. Come on, now. Come 'round for tea, you lot. Harry'd have my head if I didn't look out fer ya' like I promised I would, Albus."

Maxwell and Albus began to follow Hagrid down a pathway towards a long field. Aileen, feeling as if she didn't have any reason to join them, turned towards the castle and almost walked away. Hagrid's voice halted her.

"Where're you goin' off to, red?" Hagrid called after her, making Maxwell and Albus both look to her as well. "I invited ya' all over for tea, not just the boys."

Aileen joined them, and they started off towards the hut. Hagrid's house sat a little ways away from the Forbidden Forest, and when Aileen caught sight of it, she couldn't help but be reminded of her own one-room home back in Ireland. Just when they came within a rock's throw of the hut, a creature galloped around the building, running directly towards them. At first, Aileen thought it was a very fluffy dog, but its ears were rounded and its tail was nothing more than a furry brown nub.

It was a very young bear cub, with a small, purple bow tied around one of her ears.

"Julie!" Maxwell yelped joyfully, spreading his arms open and letting Julie the bear tackle him into the grass. The bear pawed over his face and licked seemingly every inch of his visible skin.

Hagrid grinned under his beard.

Aileen and Albus stared at the ground where Maxwell lie embracing the bear cub, both looking stunned.

" _This_ is your pet?" Albus said blankly. "Aren't you supposed to have... a cat? Or an owl?"

"Eh, the rules are looser than they used to be these days," Hagrid said. "They ain't really picky about which pets they let the students have, so long as it ain't anything huge or poisonous. Blimey, even Arius has a pet dragon, and dragon breeding is s'posed to be illegal outside of the designated zones. Don't know 'im too well yet, but I'm guessin' that Headmaster Arius is an animal lover."

Aileen didn't say anything. She'd heard about Julie before, but she never thought to ask exactly what Julie was.

Hagrid took them into his hut and sat them all down at his large table. Maxwell sat happily with Julie in his lap, and Hagrid began to pour each of them a cup of tea from his kettle. Their mugs were about the size of their heads.

"So, our dads are working together?" Albus said, looking over to Maxwell. "What's that about, Hagrid?"

"I told yeh already, they're lookin' for that Xyler fella," Hagrid replied, gulping some of his tea. "Bloke's been breaking into wizarding shops and hurting folks who don't cooperate. He ain't too big time right now, but the Ministry figg'ers that they ought to nip him in the bud soon, before his plans start to come together, whatever they are. One of the few times when the Ministry does right, looks like. They get it right once in a blue moon. Plus, there're still Death Eater families out there, and the longer this Xyler bloke is on the streets, the longer he has to gather followers. Some families, like the Malfoys or the Sayres... well, they have a bit of a dark history attached to their names. They'd be the first people who'd be recruited, assumin' Xyler is seeking 'em out. Both have a lot of influence in the wizard world, those two families. Oh, the Malfoys claim they're all cleaned up and such, but they've gone back on that claim before. The Sayres, well... they ain't a bad family, but one of theirs was a Death Eater back in the days of you-know-who. Andy Sayre, I think his name was. He went over to the dark side, turned rotten like a bad apple. He started brainwashing his little nephew, too, to beat it all. S'pose he figg'red that he'd steer his family over to the dark side if he started messin' with the kids' heads."

Aileen, who was barely listening and letting her eyes wander over the pelts hanging from Hagrid's wall, thought over everything that Hagrid had just said. The Sayre family? She was certain she'd heard that name before... but where?

"Sayre?" Maxwell uttered, letting Julie gnaw on his hand. "Like that creepy Erika girl? Her name is Sayre, right?"

Hagrid, Albus, and Aileen all stared at him. Maxwell didn't notice, as he was too busy playing with Julie to realize that he'd said anything significant.

A few things clicked in Aileen's head.

"Um," she started, looking up at Hagrid. "The nephew... who was he? What was his name?"

"I dunno, can't remember the details. I heard the story from Harry after he fought that fella in London last year." Hagrid replied.

"But he's still alive, isn't he?" Aileen asked.

"Nope, not n'more," Hagrid answered. "I heard he died in Azkaban after his parents had 'im put away. Couldn't a' been easy on his parents, havin' to lock their own kid up like that, but what choice did they have? He was a ruddy monster. He was tryin' to carry on you-know-who's work after he died, tortured a wand salesman in Germany fer some reason... and who knows why, but the point is, he was a menace, and he had to be locked up."

Aileen's mind fumbled and jumped between many different thoughts. If Xyler was connected to the Sayres - that was to suggest that Andy Sayre and his nameless nephew had started to follow Xyler after Voldemort's downfall - then perhaps whatever Erika Sayre was plotting inside of the school was far more sinister than Aileen thought. But she was just a simple first year, and the way Hagrid explained it, the Sayre family weren't all Death Eaters. In fact, Andy and his nephew were the only known guilty members of their family, and the nephew's own parents had him locked away once they discovered that he'd turned bad. How likely was it that Erika was connected to Xyler? And if she was, then what was her ultimate goal? Why was she sneaking around Hogwarts at night? What did her suspicious actions have to do with Xyler?

Fearing that she might have been making herself unnecessarily paranoid, Aileen sipped on her tea and went silent. Listening happily as Maxwell and Albus traded stories with Hagrid about their fathers, she let her fanciful suspicions subside.

She couldn't have known just how right she was.


	7. What Lurks in the Halls

The afternoon was over too quickly.

Aileen had a blast, shooting off fire with her wand and not having to worry about burning any walls or ceilings. Maxwell and Albus joined in on the fun, Maxwell accidently spawning about twenty tiny bunnies which hopped away in a swarm of fur, and Albus unintentionally making one of the rabbits fly into the air. Once all the rabbits had run away, Albus tried to perform a spell that his father had taught him.

 _"Stupefy!"_ Albus called, shooting a red light out of his wand towards the pack of fleeing rabbits, but the light vanished, and nothing happened.

"You just need practice," Aileen told him. "I think we all need practice. We haven't even been taught the basics yet."

"Yeah, you're right," Albus replied, putting his wand away.

Aileen slid her wand back into her sleeve, though Maxwell, who was firing off blasts of colorful sparks, didn't seem to be done playing. Instead of using her wand, Aileen held out her hand, attempting to channel her energy into her palm. A small flame flickered into being in her grasp. She moved her hand to the side, and the flame almost went out, but didn't.

"I wish I could make it bigger without using a wand," Aileen said. "My dad can do it. I wonder why I can't..."

"Well, like you said, we need practice," Albus told her. "We haven't even learned the basics yet."

"It might help if you annunciate," Professor Crowley spoke from the entrance of the clearing, approaching them.

Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus all turned to him.

Professor Crowley strolled forward and stopped in front of Aileen, holding his wand upright.

 _"Incendio."_

At that, a wicked fire shot out of the professor's wand and spiraled into the sky with haste.

"Wow," Aileen said, gazing into the clouds where the line of fire had disappeared.

"I'm not encouraging you to play with fire, but... when you're preforming spells, you need to annunciate. To speak the incantation aloud," Professor Crowley informed.

"But my dad can do it without annunciating," Aileen replied.

"Your dad has had quite a lot of practice, then," Professor Crowley said. "You can't master spells without speaking them first. Words give it power, just as a wand gives it power. The words and the wand help you to channel and control the magic. Once you completely master the spells, and I mean really, really master them, then you'll be able to perform them without a wand, or without annunciation... or perhaps without either one."

Aileen thought of her father whenever he was on stage at his carnival, creating fire and dancing with the flames for the entertainment of the muggles. He never used a wand, and she had never heard him speak any spells aloud, either. How long would it take for her to become such a master? How long had it taken her father?

"You can't be impatient," Professor Crowley told her, as if reading her mind. "You can't try to leap up to your father's level all at once. It takes a lot of time, and practice, and discipline."

Aileen nodded, staring into the feeble flame in her hand. She extended her arm, turned away from the professor, and tried to mimic the spell he had spoken.

 _"Incendio."_

Her palm became warm, and the flame flourished upwards, growing into a baseball sized burst of power for a moment. Seconds later, it died down and fizzled out.

Aileen smiled.

"You see?" Professor Crowley said. "Annunciation helps you tremendously. Although... try to refrain from using your hands to cast those spells for now. You don't want to practice with fire. At least, not without a wand. If something goes wrong, you could do yourself or someone else a lot of damage. Your body and your words give the spell power, but your wand gives it control. Remember that. You don't want to overlook control when you're dealing with fire."

"Okay," Aileen responded.

"You three should go inside," Professor Crowley pointed upwards, where the glass wall reached up the side of the building. "That's the outside of the hospital wing, up there, on one of the higher floors. There's a hallway right next to that glass, which means you're probably making a scene for someone to see. You might want to leave before some angry teachers storm down here. Oh, and don't play with fire. Next time, I won't cover for you. Understand?"

Aileen nodded, and she, Maxwell, and Albus rallied together and headed back into the castle together. Aileen took out her compass and followed the arrow through the halls. They sat together at the Gryffindor table again for dinner, and they pretended not to notice the frequent looks from the Hufflepuff head of house, Professor Truman. Silently fearing that she was about to get a scolding from one of the teachers, Aileen quickly ate a few spoonfuls of the macaroni and cheese she'd put on her plate and left the Great Hall, leaving Maxwell and Albus with a farewell "See you tomorrow."

All in all, Aileen found that Hogwarts was quite enjoyable so far. The teachers were all very unique, and she was glad to have friends as well. She especially liked Professor Crowley, who seemed to be incredibly knowledgeable about his own subject. What would the fanciful lessons of combative spell casting be like this year, and how powerful would she be once she mastered her use of fire? The thought of it was enough to send a wave of excitement throughout her entire body like a humming electric shock. Oh, what fun it would be...

When she spoke the password into the Slytherin's stone wall and stepped inside, she found that many of the Slytherins had either left dinner early or hadn't bothered eating at all. About ten kids of all ages from eleven to seventeen stood in a crooked circle around the furniture, facing the fireplace and cheering and chanting.

It took her a moment to find what was holding all of their attention; hovering in between the two green lamps, even higher from the ground than he had been in the morning, Allister the house elf was hanging upside down, his little legs stuck together due to some kind of jinx and his arms drooping uselessly over his head. A tall, scrawny fourth year was standing on the couch with his wand raised, keeping the house elf elevated, while an oafish sixth year laughed and made frequent spinning motions with his wand, forcing the floating house elf to whirl rapidly in place.

" _Stop it_!" Aileen shrieked without thinking.

A few of the students glanced briefly at her, but nobody stopped what they were doing.

Aileen drew her wand, not knowing what she was about to do and not caring. Just then, she spotted a head of bleach blonde across the room; Scorpius Malfoy stood in the doorway of the boy's dormitory.

"Are you in on this?!" Aileen roared furiously at Scorpius, pointing up at Allister. "Did you do this? Was this your idea?!"

"No, as a matter of fact, it _wasn't_ ," Scorpius snapped in response, his nose curling up as he snarled at the other Slytherins. Judging by the gleam of surprise in his eyes, Aileen realized that Scorpius had only just walked into the room, just like she had, not having known what was taking place in their common room beforehand. "What on earth are you doing?" His voice grew louder as he rounded on his older peers. "Stop it. Put the elf down. Now!"

The two older students who were tasked with tormenting Allister stopped smiling, seeing Scorpius' bright hair and brand new robes, perhaps recognizing him as a Malfoy instantly. As if being chided by a parent or a teacher, the skinny fourth year and the fat sixth year stepped off of the couch, lowered their wands, and backed away from the crowd.

Allister yelped out a scream as the levitation spell ceased to work, and he fell to the ground, thumping onto the floor hard and laying on his side, his legs still locked together like they were super glued.

Scorpius had his wand out now, and he jabbed it towards the two bullies. "Undo the jinx, right now."

"Why don't _you_ do it, if you're so tough?" the fat Slytherin replied. "Don't get a bloated ego just because you're a Malfoy, shorty. I could hex you six ways to Sunday if I wanted to. You're just a first year."

"You'd never live it down if you did," Scorpius growled. "You think I don't know any magic just because I'm a first year? Try me."

The two of them shared a glaring match, during which neither of them allowed themselves to blink. When it became apparent that neither of them were going to throw the first hex, someone else preformed the counter curse. Erika stepped into the room from the girls' dormitory, held up her flashy wand, and waved it gently in Allister's direction.

 _"Solvo Mortis."_

Allister's legs relaxed, unhinging and returning to their normal state.

None of the students were laughing now, as a deathly silence had fallen over the common room.

Allister whimpered, shakily reaching his feet and using his dirty pillowcase to wipe away tears, his ears hanging low and his legs still aching. Aileen crossed the common room, took the house elf by the arm, and forcibly escorted him away from the other students, passing Erika and disappearing into the girls' dormitory. Once she cleared the dormitory and reached her bed, she was met with a slumberous Ziggy, who was sprawled in curled weaves all along the top of her unmade bed, relaxing comfortably with a hunk of dragon meat resting in his mouth and held in place by his two long fangs.

Aileen lifted Allister and placed him on the bed, then sank onto the floor in front of her trunk and started to dig mindlessly through her belongings, wanting only to distract herself from her sudden feelings of frustration. She wasn't sure why it had angered her so much to see the other Slytherins bullying Allister. After all, there was a time when such mistreatment of house elves was commonplace, and even in this day and age, it was still considered normal among certain families or households. It wasn't right, though. Even if Allister was simply a servant, he was still a living creature, and they had bullied him into tears. And, to add onto her anger, she wasn't only furious with the other Slytherins, but also annoyed at herself for jumping onto Scorpius Malfoy's case so quickly. He seemed the snooty type, and they had started off on the wrong foot when they first met in Diagon Alley, but she was far too quick to blame him for Allister's predicament. That wasn't right, either.

"Is Miss upset with Allister?" Allister croaked in a sniffling voice, wiping his nose with his arm.

"No," Aileen replied shortly, almost wanting to respond with a yell or an insult, but shouting wouldn't solve anything. "I'm mad at them, not you."

"Ah... A-Allister is okay, Miss!" Allister told her, swinging his legs back and forth over the edge of the bed. "His legs ache, is all, Miss... but Allister is okay! Oh, and Sir Hagrid kindly gave Allister a serving of his dragon meat! Allister went to the kitchen, but the other elves says they won't give food to me, so I went to Sir Hagrid, Miss. Sir Hagrid is kind, always helps Allister when he needs help, he does!"

"Allister," Aileen said. "Can you do magic?"

"M-magic?" Allister echoed. "Y-yes, all house elves can do magic, Miss. We're just not permitted to, is all, Miss."

"Well, listen," Aileen replied. "Next time they start bullying you, I order you to fight back, even if you have to use magic. Okay?"

"You're ordering Allister to attack his masters?" Allister gasped, hitting a high note and widening his saucer-like eyes.

"Only if they hurt you," Aileen clarified. "If they hurt you again, then I order you to stand up for yourself and fight back. You won't get in trouble, I promise. If anything happens, I'll take the heat for it. Okay?"

"Why... yes, yes, Allister understands," the elf nodded quickly, looking down and making a thoughtful face. "You give Allister these orders to protect his wellbeing, Miss?"

"Well, yeah," Aileen replied dully. "Of course."

"Then, Allister must do Miss a kindness, too!" Allister said. "He will keep the snake fed every day from now on, he will!"

Aileen took a gander at her python, who looked wider and lazier than usual atop the bed, an oozing chunk of raw meat horseshoed into its entrapment of a mouth. He looked like the snake equivalent of a couch potato. There was a moment of quietness before Aileen went to change out of her robes, wanting to get to bed early so that she might actually get a full night's sleep this time. Ziggy slept beside her again, and Allister made a bed out of Aileen's open trunk, lying inside of her clothes and using her father's old cloak for a blanket.

* * *

During the first week at Hogwarts, Aileen had forgotten how much she missed her home.

Their classes consisted of lessons taught by Professors Truman - the head of Hufflepuff house who had a liking for loud fashion, who suffered from vitiligo, and who turned out to have a very bubbly and fun loving personality - Longbottom, who was one of the nicest and coolest teachers, matched only by Professor Crowley - Takahashi in Astronomy, a foreign wizard from Japan who took constellations (and everything else) very seriously - Flitwick, who was still in charge of teaching Charms class - Hayes, the handsome, wavy haired blonde man who Aileen had seen at the teacher's table the night they arrived, teaching Potions - Hendon, an impossibly old wizard who might have been around longer than the history subjects he taught - and lastly, Professor Crowley. When Friday came around, it came to Aileen's attention that the only teacher she hadn't met yet was the Flying teacher, as the first years only had Flying scheduled once a week, and it was the last class of the day on Fridays. Maxwell voiced his desire to visit the Care of Magical Creatures class every day, even though the three of them wouldn't be able to take that class until their third year. Maxwell simply had a profound liking for animals, Aileen figured.

Friday at lunch time, Maxwell's enormous owl squeezed through one of the Great Hall's windows, as well as many other owls from the other students' families. The owl looked exhausted; it rubbed its beak on Maxwell's nose, dropped three letters on the table, and flew away. Aileen wasn't bothered with any troubling feelings of homesickness anymore, until Maxwell handed her and Albus their family letters. Aileen finished her meal of roast beef and mashed potatoes, opened the letter, and read her father's scratchy handwriting. Unlike the thick parchment she had sent him, he'd written back to her on a torn piece of notebook paper.

 _How's it, Hothead?_

 _Your mum's not feeling well, so I'm writing for the both of us. First off, be careful with that snake talking business. I didn't know you were a Parseltongue. Chip off the old block, ya are! There's nothing wrong with being able to talk to snakes, but some people are unnerved by it, if ya haven't noticed already. Just don't go around claiming you're the heir of Slytherin, and you should be fine. I shoulda known that little Maxwell would end up in Hufflepuff, no surprise there! I couldn't be prouder at you getting into Slytherin. Do me a solid and give those pompous Gryffindors a run for their money, will ya? Keep writing me and tell me what's going on with ya._

 _I miss you, loves_

The paper gave off the scent of nicotine the moment Aileen unfolded it, and she found herself missing her father immensely once she was finished reading his short letter. Her father would sometimes pick up a heavy smoking habit, and she wasn't sure where he got the cigarettes, living in that isolated carnival of his... but he always smoked the same brand, and the scent of it was stuck to her fingers now. Disgusting as she always found the smell, Aileen liked it, as it somehow made her feel closer to her dad, in some bizarre way.

After dinner, they followed the first years outside where a white-haired woman was waiting for them, standing in between two rows of broomsticks. The lesson was short, and nobody did anything spectacular. The most anyone did was hovering two feet from the ground and trying to keep their balance as they floated. Aileen took Maxwell and Albus to the courtyard again, where they practiced a basic disarming spell that Professor Crowley had taught them. Their shouts of "Expelliarmus!" echoed through the area, their spells leaving scars on the nearby stone structures and narrowly missing one second year's head in passing. Aileen wasn't sure why Albus was spending so much time with her. She was used to Maxwell sticking to her side, but she had never made any other friends until arriving to Hogwarts, so she wasn't sure how friends were supposed to act. Perhaps Albus simply enjoyed their company more than he did the students in his own house, like his brother, James. That would be understandable...

Night had fallen by the time any of them grew tired of practicing. They parted ways and headed back to their common rooms. Aileen found Allister feeding a hunk of stolen steak to Ziggy when she returned to the dormitory. She crawled into bed, welcomed by the ominous green room and the warmth of her blankets. Every night thus far, she'd been dreaming about her mother and father, or about her new friends joining her on an adventure in the Forbidden Forest and performing magic that, in reality, they couldn't even imagine. As she drifted asleep, her parents' faces appeared in her mind, and she dreamed that she, Maxwell, and Albus had gone back to the O'Heidin Carnival for their holiday, and they were standing beside her mother in the crowd, watching Samuel do a very strange dance on his stage, and for some reason, he was wearing an alarming amount of clown makeup...

 _Thunk._

Something fell off of someone's nightstand, and Aileen blinked herself awake, sitting upright and yawning loudly. Her eyes wandered the room, seeing that most of the other beds were occupied by Slytherin girls. Her trunk still sat opened between her bed and the giant green window, and inside of it, Allister snored lightly with Ziggy wrapped around his entire body, both of them covered in Aileen's cloak. The third time she studied everything in the room, her eyes fixed to the darkness, and she was able to make out that three beds away from her was an empty bed, harboring only a set of crinkled and abandoned sheets and blankets.

Aileen didn't know how late it was, exactly, but one thing was for certain; it was nighttime, which meant that one of the students was out of bed and sneaking about the castle after hours.

Come to think of it, this wasn't the first time that an offbeat noise had woken her up in the night. It had happened nearly every night this week. Who was sneaking out every night, and why?

Suddenly curious, Aileen sprung from her bed as stealthily as she could, landing on her toes and bending over the messy pile of clothes at the edge of her bed. She was wearing her father's old green pajamas, so she needed to rifle through her school robe in order to find her wand. First, her hand wrapped around the guidance compass that was left in the robe's left pocket, then she pulled the wand from the sleeve and crept out of the dormitory, through the common room, and towards the exit.

 _"Purity Prevails,"_ she whispered to the stone wall, wincing and biting her lip as the stones shifted aside rather loudly.

Aileen was as quiet as a shadow as she tip-toed up the wide stairs and started through the hallway. Whoever had sneaked out of the dormitory couldn't have gone far. She'd heard the sound of the person shifting and knocking something over only seconds before opening her eyes. Whoever they were, they weren't much father ahead of her, though she was having a difficult time trying to see in the pitch black corridor. So, Aileen held out her hand and concentrated, creating a candle-like flame in her palm and allowing its dim glow to lead her way.

Her heart pounded harder with every step she took.

The hall was endless, seeming to stretch into blackness forever.

The hand which carried the flame was held steady, and her other hand had both her wand and her compass in its grasp. Aileen took glimpses of her compass as she walked. The arrow was fixed directly ahead. Was it leading her to the Slytherin student who was out of bed? She would find out soon...

Growing more and more anxious, Aileen narrowed her eyes ahead, trying to make out something, anything, that could have been a person. But she saw no human shaped shadows; instead, she was met with a horrific sight that caught her entirely off guard.

Something sentient had formed in front of her, something tall, dark, and solid. Two crimson eyes opened on the top of the obscure body, glaring down at her and flashing a wicked smile, its pointy teeth grinding together, its monstrous black hands reaching out-

 _"Incendio!"_ Aileen panicked, jutting her hand forward and blasting a fireball at the creature.

She wasted no time; Aileen was off like a shot, bolting back to her common room without daring to look back.


	8. The Dueling Club

Professor Crowley had only just started teaching the students offensive spells on the week of the dueling club's first meeting.

It wasn't much; he'd taught them basic disarming, and a few of the first years hadn't even completely mastered it, but the lessons moved on in any case. Half of his class time was spent in the textbooks, jotting down notes or participating in a discussion, while the other half was used to practice the spells. There were no age restrictions in his dueling club, which meant that, naturally, students of a younger age would be at a clear disadvantage against older ones, but Crowley was certain to hammer the rules of safety into all of their heads before starting his first session, his eyes lingering on the fifth, sixth, and seventh years when he explained that the younger students weren't guinea pigs for the testing of violent or homemade spells.

Aileen wasn't afraid of the older students, though. As a crowd formed in the chamber which Crowley was using to host his dueling club, she, Maxwell, Albus, Scorpius, Erika, and surprisingly, Rose Weasley all peered up with excited anticipation. On the surface of a very long table, two fifth year students had bowed to each other and started a duel. Blasts of bright reds, blues, yellows, and oranges shot back and forth, and everyone cheered and clapped for them as they fought and deflected each other. Aileen was particularly interested in studying the older students' movements, hoping to practice the incantations she was hearing whenever she was in private later. She'd be a master in no time.

"They're quite good," Rose said. "I've got the basics down, I think, but I'm not sure I could do what they're doing."

"Tch," James scoffed from nearby. "I've been in this club for two years. Just wait until I get up there. I'll outshine everyone here."

Rose gave him a falsely enthusiastic thumbs up. It took James a moment to realize that she was mocking him.

Once the fifth years finished, however, Rose and the others would see that James wasn't all talk. He bowed to another third year, and after the duel commenced, James disarmed him with ease, and just to show off his natural finesse, he let off a purposely badly aimed Expelliarmus, which sent the fifth year flying backwards. Fred winced as he watched.

"That was... unnecessary," Rose sighed.

Aileen didn't hear her over her own giggles.

Another third year climbed on top of the table to face James Potter, and just like the first, James sent his wand flying the very second he rose from his bow. Fearing that he might meet the same fate as the previous student to fight James, the disarmed third year took a bold dive off of the table, almost landing on top of the crowd, but the students cleared away in an instant, opening plenty of space for the student to smash onto the floor.

"Very brave, Davidson," Professor Crowley said sarcastically to the fallen third year. "Running away and diving off of the table in a panic. Enacted like a true warrior."

Everyone roared with laughter.

Maxwell rubbed his robe's sleeve on his fogging glasses. Aileen turned to Albus, expecting to see him laughing as well, but Albus appeared distant, perhaps troubled.

"What's wrong?" Aileen asked him.

Albus shrugged.

"My brother's a tough act to follow," he answered a moment later.

Aileen, remembering that Albus didn't like living in the shadow of other Potters, silently understood.

When Professor Crowley called out to the crowd, asking who else would face James Potter, something caught Aileen's eye. It was a tiny, dark thing, fluttering around at the very top of the chamber's ceiling. A bat.

It must have been the bat that she'd let into the school on her first day, Aileen realized, craning her neck and staring up at the bat as it hung itself upside down from the ceiling, preparing for a nap. It'd been living in the school all this time, perhaps living off of scraps. Maybe Aileen would have the opportunity to nip it into her cage on a later date and keep it as a pet like she'd planned.

"I'll go next," the cool, smooth voice of Erika spoke up. "I'll fight him."

The crowd traded whispers, and Crowley shook his head at her.

"No first years against third years. Only first and second years are permitted to fight each other. Third years and fourth years may fight each other. Fifth, sixth, and seventh years fight each other. But, we don't need any drastic age gaps between opponents. We don't want any accidents happening due to an avoidable disadvantage," the professor told her.

"I'm not at a disadvantage," Erika said calmly, her eye twinkling at James. "He's only two years older than me, and I had magic homeschooling before I even came to Hogwarts. I used to duel with my family. It's not like I haven't had enough practice."

Professor Crowley thought for a moment.

"Fine," he said. "I'll allow it this time. James, if you do anything foolish, I'll have your wand for it."

"Yes, captain!" James replied with a salute.

Erika stepped onto the table, and they bowed to each other.

"My money's on the psychotic one," Aileen whispered to Maxwell and Albus.

"Which one is that?" Maxwell and Albus both replied at the same time. Aileen and Albus snickered, but Maxwell had asked the question very genuinely, and he merely looked down in confusion when they didn't answer him.

James took his usual stance, a wide open one with bent knees and his wrist arched upwards, ready to fling his wand.

Erika's stance was more elegant, and while it looked less intimidating, something about the energy she gave off made Aileen think that she knew what she was doing.

 _"Expelliarmus!"_

 _"Protego!"_

James tried his signature spell, but Erika deflected it, catching the ray of red light with her wand and redirecting it upwards.

The crowd broke into fascinated utters.

 _"Confundo!"_ Erika shrieked seconds later.

Caught off guard, James wasn't able to block the spell. The light from Erika's wand hit him squarely in the chest, and he fell onto his butt, staring dazed and lost into the air. James looked in every direction as though he'd forgotten entirely where he was.

Many of the students clapped for Erika, some of James' friends laughing and jeering at him. James fell onto his back and didn't get up.

"What happened? I blinked and missed it," Aileen said, making Albus chortle loudly. Rose shook her head at them.

"Very impressive for a first year," Professor Crowley said, stepping onto the table and waving his wand over James, effectively removing the effects of the Confundous Charm. "Now, who would like to go up against Erika next?"

Nobody spoke up right away. Aileen considered climbing onto that table, but this was her very first time in a dueling club, and she didn't have any practice dueling, unlike Erika. Aileen was confident in her own strength, but she doubted that she could win a proper duel against Erika as of now, and she couldn't stomach the thought of losing in front of everyone. No, she wouldn't take the challenge until she was sure that she could bring Erika down.

"Oh, puh- _lease_ ," Scorpius Malfoy scowled, stepping onto the table where James was moments ago and glaring daggers at Erika. "You think you're the only person to grow up in a proper family? You think you're the only person who came to school prepared? I've been around the block, too. My family has been training me since I was old enough to walk. That's the Malfoy way."

Erika said nothing, but returned Scorpius' snide remarks with an equally daring smirk.

"They might kill each other by accident if we're lucky," Aileen said. "Cross your fingers, guys."

Maxwell and Albus sniggered.

"Don't joke like that! That's not funny!" Rose protested, but she was the only one who didn't seem to appreciate a good joke at the expense of the two prudish Slytherins.

Erika and Scorpius bowed and took their stances.

 _"Conscendo!"_

 _"Protego!"_

Scorpius was the first to attack, but Erika swiftly deflected the spell again.

Unlike James, Scorpius didn't give himself a moment to blink after the deflection; he sent off another spell, then another, and Erika was forced to deflect them at a speed that looked barely manageable. Many of the students watched and waited for Erika to stumble backwards or to miss a deflection, but astoundingly, she didn't.

 _"Conscendo!"_

 _"Protego Redirect!"_

Scorpius's curse hit Erika's wand, and in a flash, it flew out and hurtled back towards Scorpius, hitting him directly in the stomach and sending him flying up into the air. He kept going up, and up, and up, until Professor Crowley removed the effects of the spell. Scorpius then fell through the chamber and landed in a harsh roll on the table.

Some of the students laughed, but Scorpius had all but given up. He forced himself to his feet and began to throw spells at Erika again.

 _"Hominem Exumai!"_

 _"Protego!"_

 _"Avifors!"_

 _"Protego!"_

 _"Stupefy!"_

 _"Protego!"_

"Stop blocking and fight back!" Scorpius snapped angrily, sending a jolt of red lightning out of his wand.

The lightning shot forward and came dangerously close to hitting Erika's foot, and the second she looked downward, Scorpius seized his chance.

 _"Colovaria!"_

For the first time, Erika failed to deflect a spell. Scorpius' charm hit her in the face, and she stumbled back a few steps, but after a moment, she straightened out and looked herself up and down. The spell had no effect as far as she could tell.

"Is that it?" Erika said to Scorpius, but Scorpius was wearing a devilish smile.

The students' laughter grew louder.

From the corner of her eyes, Erika was able to see that her dark, navy hair was brightening into a horribly bright blonde color. She clasped her hands onto her head, looking horrorstruck.

"How _dare_ you!" Erika hissed. "All right, if that's the way you want it! _Engorgio Nares_!"

Her spell smacked Scorpius in the face, making him fumble backwards as well. His hands were encompassing his face, and when he lowered them, the entire chamber rumbled as the students began to suffocate under their own laughter. Scorpius' nose had grown three times in length, and it was still growing.

"All right, all right," Professor Crowley stepped onto the table, in between them. "This is getting ridiculous. This match is over. _Finite Incantatem_!"

He waved his wand in the air, disabling both Erika and Scorpius' spells. They both left the table, and Aileen wasn't sure which of them looked more furious. Next up were a couple of fourth years, though the first years weren't as interested in this fight.

"Hey," Albus said, turning to Maxwell. "How about you and I have a go?"

"Hmmn?" Maxwell had just pulled a hidden chocolate frog from inside his robe, and he'd chomped halfway through it when Albus started talking to him.

"You and I could duel, like proper mates. It'd be good practice for both of us," Albus said with a friendly smile.

Maxwell swallowed the frog and looked down at his feet. Aileen watched both of them, and she noticed that Maxwell was doing one of his signature gestures; hiding behind his fluffy bangs, looking down, and twiddling the ends of his robe's sleeves, looking as shy as ever.

"He doesn't like being in front of people," Aileen told Albus in a hushed tone. "It's stage fright, I guess."

"Well, I don't like it either," Albus said, more to Maxwell than to Aileen. "But we're not just gonna watch everyone else have all the fun, are we? We joined the dueling club. We might as well act like we're actually a part of it. We could use the practice. Playing in the courtyard is fun, but this is better. We actually get to fight real people in here. Plus, we're just going to fight each other, for now. No crazy Slytherins."

"Hey!" Aileen responded, pretending to be offended and giggling.

"Okay." Maxwell said quietly.

Once the ongoing match was over with, Professor Crowley was forced to mend one of the fourth years and return him to his original color, his skin having turned purple. "Who's next?" he called out once the table was cleared.

Albus patted Maxwell on the back, and they both climbed onto either side of the table. Neither of them bothered with a fancy stance. They bowed, stepped backwards to make a safe distance between them, and raised their wands.

 _"Ventus!"_ Albus shouted.

A powerful gust of wind erupted out of his wand like a tornado. The others didn't know it, but Albus'ss family had given him form before-school training as well. Like Erika and Scorpius, he had practiced a few of the basics before coming to Hogwarts.

Maxwell shielded his face with his arms as the wind blew over his entire body, pushing him backwards ever so slightly. The nearest students backed away from the windy table.

Feeling more nervous than ever before, Maxwell didn't retaliate; his wand discharged a lot of black smoke again, and while some of it was blown away by Albus'ss wind, there was much more of the accidental smoke than there was of the magical gust. Within a minute, the whole chamber had filled with the black smoke, and nobody could see a thing. Then, the wind from Albus'ss wand stopped, and Maxwell nearly fell forward when he realized that he no longer had to resist a windstorm.

Maxwell didn't have a lot of practice with spells like Albus did. His father had taught him a number of little tricks over the years - how to bewitch dishes into washing themselves, how to cook a dinner without leaving the couch, how to preform basic defensive magic which was as ordinary for wizard children as fire safety was for muggles - but he had never dueled before, and he'd certainly never been expected to fight in front of a bunch of people. He had no idea what to do.

Still, with his opponent shrouded in smoke, he knew that it had to be some kind of advantage. What could he do while everyone was blinded, before Crowley would cast the smoke away?

 _"Ex-Expelliarmus!"_ Maxwell stuttered, thrusting his wand forward.

To his amazement, he spotted a flicker of red light on the other side of the table amidst the smoke. He heard Albus's wand clatter onto the floor.

 _"Evanesco!"_ Professor Crowley said, and at once, the smoke vanished.

Albus stood opposite Maxwell, his hand empty, and his face harboring a widening smile.

"Good job!" Albus congratulated. "That was quick thinking!"

"It _was_ quick thinking," Professor Crowley agreed. "Using an accidental discharge as a cover for a disarming spell... that was very witty."

Maxwell's big cheeks turned scarlet.

"All right," Crowley said to the crowd as Albus and Maxwell hopped off the table. "Who hasn't had the opportunity to participate yet? I'd like for everyone to have a turn."

"I'll go again," Scorpius offered.

"I'd like for everyone to have a turn," Professor Crowley repeated. "Nobody duels twice until everyone has dueled once."

"I'll duel someone who hasn't dueled yet, then," Scorpius said.

Professor Crowley apparently didn't have a problem with this, because he said nothing when Scorpius found his way onto the table again.

"Um..." Rose Weasley timidly raised her hand. "I... I haven't fought yet, sir."

"Very well," Professor Crowley replied.

Rose stood before Scorpius, and they both bowed.

 _"Expelliarmus!"_

They both yelled the same spell at once, and their incantations collided and canceled out.

 _"Colloshoe!"_ Rose chanted.

Then, Scorpius suddenly felt off balance and rooted to the spot, literally. His shoes had melted onto the surface of the table.

 _"Hominem Exumai!"_

Scorpius fired off a blast of white light, and the moment it made contact, it sent Rose hurtling backwards through the air with the velocity of a cannonball. She flipped and landed awkwardly after smashing into the wall behind the table's end. Everyone was able to hear her burst into tears the second she hit the floor.

Nobody was laughing or cheering now. Professor Crowley knelt at Rose's side, examining her all over and determining that nothing had been broken, though it was obvious that hitting the wall and landing lopsided on the floor had hurt her very much. She tried to stifle her sobbing, feeling embarrassed and wanting to hide her teary eyes from the crowd.

"That's my _cousin_!" James screamed from the mob of third years, his face twisting in anger as he tried to rush forward, but Fred was holding him back. "That's my _cousin_ you just slammed into a wall, Malfoy! Don't you _dare_ touch my cousin! Come over here! Why don't you pick on someone who can hex you into oblivion! You little git! You foul, cruel, evil little git!"

Scorpius might have retorted nastily to James if he hadn't been so shocked. His mouth was hanging open, and he stared across the room where Rose had landed.

"I didn't mean..." Scorpius murmured.

The students all gossiped to each other frantically, and Aileen turned to speak to Maxwell and Albus, but Albus had disappeared. He was on the other side of the room now, checking to make sure that his cousin was alright.

Professor Crowley asked Rose a number of times if she wanted to go to the hospital wing, but Rose simply shook her head. So, Crowley seated Rose right beside him on the side of a smaller table, away from the crowd and the duels.

"Whoever hasn't participated yet, step onto the table," Professor Crowley said. "And, Mr. Malfoy, no more Hominem Exumai. Use smaller spells. You could have seriously done someone a proper injury. If you use that spell again, you'll find yourself in detention. Now... Finite Incantatem."

Scorpius's shoes conformed back to their usual shape and unstuck from the table. James was still fighting to get closer to Scorpius, but nobody volunteered to duel.

"Really? No one?" Professor Crowley said. "Who hasn't participated yet? Hm... oh, Aileen. You haven't dueled yet, have you? Get up there."

Aileen's heart jumped into her throat. Everyone was turning to face her, and she felt as if her legs had turned to lead. Out of the thirty-or-so students who were standing around, why did he have to call on her? Professor Crowley seemed the type of teacher to lecture through experiences rather than exams, but shouldn't he have been more occupied with tending to Rose? Or perhaps making some of the older students duel instead? Why did it have to be her?

Gulping, Aileen stepped up from a chair and onto the table, standing across from Scorpius.

Scorpius didn't look nearly as pumped as he had minutes ago, but he took his bow and held his wand at the ready. Aileen did the same.

 _"Everte Statum!"_

 _"Protego!"_

Aileen, acting entirely on instinct, raised her wand and announced the same spell that she'd heard from Erika, moving her wrist in the exact same motion, pronouncing every letter in the exact same way. She had never used Protego before, and she wasn't even sure what the spell was meant for, but after seeing Erika deflect spell after spell with it, it was the first and most practical spell to come to her mind.

To her surprise, it worked perfectly; Scorpius's spell rebounded from Aileen's Sycamore and hit the wall, leaving behind a small singe mark.

Her mind raced; in Charms and Transfiguration, she'd learned how to transform small animals into dishware, and she'd learned a simple levitation spell as well as a way to change an item's color, but none of that would be useful here. Right now, she needed offensive spells. But the first years hadn't gotten very far into their Defense Against the Dark Arts class yet; she wasn't sure she even knew any offensive spells at all.

Except one.

 _"Incendio!"_ Aileen yelled, jolting her wand and making a massive wave of flames erupt from it.

The great burst of fire grew as it hurtled across the room. It chased after Scorpius when he scrambled backwards, swishing his wand at it and trying desperately to escape its reach.

Just when she was sure that the fire had him fully distracted, Aileen snapped her wrist to the side, severing the spell's connection with her wand. The fire began to vanish, and barely a second later, Aileen let off another spell.

 _"Expelliarmus!"_

Through the disappearing fire, a streak of red light soared by, but Scorpius heard her shout the incantation; he yanked his arm away and spun around smoothly, narrowly dodging the disarming spell.

 _"Everte Statum!"_

 _"Protego!"_

They repeated their first spells, and the same thing happened. A perfect deflection.

The crowd began to cheer again as the duel became heated.

What could Aileen do to continue? Apart from the disarming spell, the fire spell, and the deflection spell she'd just picked up, she didn't know anything else. She had very few options as far as spells, and she had no time to think; Scorpius was quick on his feet if nothing else, easily adaptable and highly offensive in his fighting style. He wasn't using any protective or deflecting spells, she noticed. Perhaps defensive spells weren't his forte. Not only that, but he had moved backwards several steps since she sent that blast of fire at him...

 _"Incendio!"_

Another explosion of fire swept over the table and headed for Scorpius. He fumbled away, jumping backwards and covering his face with his arms.

Aileen held the spell in place as the fire grew bigger. Scorpius scrambled backwards more and more, until finally-

 _Thunk._

Scorpius stepped off of the back of the table by accident, crumbling onto the floor behind it.

Aileen laughed, severing her fire and making it vanish again.

"Well, we'll call that a wrap," Professor Crowley decided. "I have a feeling you two would maim each other if we don't stop it here."

Aileen rejoined the crowd with an expression of triumph, not caring about the next duel at all. It felt wonderful to have won her first duel, but she suspected that Scorpius didn't intend to let her live it down; she knew that he'd be out for blood now, and every time they'd have the chance at every dueling club to come, the two of them would fight, and he would get fiercer and fiercer. It didn't matter to her; she wanted it no other way. In fact, she very much wanted to go up against Erika, too. Erika was gifted with defensive spells, it seemed, but Aileen had the feeling that she'd been holding back. Maybe, eventually, Aileen would force her to fight to her fullest. What a wicked duel it would be.

"Not bad," James said grumpily, giving Aileen a pat on the arm. "I wouldn't have stopped the fire if I was you, though. Seriously. Light him on fire next time."

"Where did you learn Incendio?" Fred asked her. "You're a first year. You're not supposed to know that spell yet."

Aileen glimpsed at Professor Crowley.

"Um... well, sometimes, my wand spits out fire whenever I'm practicing. I guess it happens because my dad's been teaching me how to use fire since I was little," Aileen said. "So... Professor Crowley taught me the spell I needed to know to control fire. I think that's the only reason he taught it to me early, so I could control it better."

The older students began to duel again, and Aileen, Maxwell, Albus, James, and Fred sat around on the floor near the wall. They were at the back of the crowd now, none of them caring to duel any more today. Rose was about to leave (Professor Crowley gave her permission to leave early), and when she reached the doorway, Scorpius was waiting there for her.

Fred and James were trading ideas for inventive offensive spells, but Aileen didn't listen. Her eyes lingered on Rose and Scorpius, though it was difficult to eavesdrop on them from five yards away, especially with the crowd chattering and spells being shouted.

"I didn't... mean to do that," Scorpius said with some difficulty, looking like he was having a very hard time saying very simple words. "That... earlier..."

Rose tilted her head at him.

"I'm sorry," Scorpius finally told her, wincing as if the words hurt him.

"It's okay," Rose replied softly, attempting a smile. Her eyes were still puffy from where she'd been crying. "It was just an accident."

Scorpius's pale skin faded red.

He stepped aside and allowed her to leave the chamber.

Aileen looked away, pretending not to have been watching. It was strange; underneath his somewhat pompous exterior, Scorpius seemed to be a decent person. Even stranger was the hot temper that had flared up when he faced Erika. Until now, Aileen had suspected that Scorpius and Erika might have been working together on whatever secretive tasks were being preformed at nighttime. But now... that didn't seem likely. The two of them hated each other, from what Aileen could gather. Maybe they were rivals before arriving to Hogwarts? Maybe Xyler put them both up to something, and they were competing to see which of them could accomplish their goal first? Hagrid had said that the Malfoys had a dark history, after all. Their entire family once followed Lord Voldemort. Aileen couldn't dismiss Scorpius as a threat, not just yet.

Only ten minutes went by before Professor Crowley dismissed everyone. Aileen and her friends were some of the last to leave.

Aileen didn't talk to any of them as they made their way to the Great Hall for dinner. Her thoughts were overwhelmed with an impatient sense of curiosity, and she wanted more than anything to know what was going on behind closed curtains in Hogwarts.


	9. Hallow's Eve Hunt

The weeks crawled by, and as they did, the lessons became harder.

"The first Quidditch game of the year is just a couple of days after Halloween, and I know that means all you athletes have to practice, but I still expect to see your homework on my desk Monday morning!" Professor Truman had said to her class in Transfiguration just a week before Halloween. "Three sheets on the procedure of turning smaller articles of furniture into larger ones! The extension of matter is tricky, oh yes, but magic knows no limits! And you won't get it right if you don't know all the details!"

"Bloody waste of time, if you ask me." Albus grumbled once the class was over. "Who needs to know how to change a lamp into a table? If you need a table, then why didn't you just buy a table in the first place instead of getting a stupid lamp? Honestly, they have a spell for every little thing. People are so lazy."

He, Aileen, and Maxwell would overhear a lot of stories from their peers in the Great Hall over the following week about how they had horribly transfigured some of the furniture in their common rooms, accidently turning their lanterns and torches into beehives or venus flytraps.

Their bombardment of homework continued throughout the week; old Professor Hendon was arguing with the previous teacher of History of Magic on Monday morning, a ghost named Professor Binns (who remained in the classroom even after a living teacher was appointed, if only to instruct the new teacher on all the proper methods of teaching, many times forgetting that he wasn't the teacher, as well as frequently calling the students by the wrong names). The two old men would sometimes cooperate and teach the class together, and at the end of Monday's lecture, Binns had convinced Hendon to give the students homework. Aileen had heard from James that the classes used to be shorter, with more class periods crammed into a single day and less time to do the work. Knowing this, she thought that she'd have it easy, only having three classes a day - but no. The classes were dreadfully long, and the teachers seemed to be trying to fill every spare minute with whatever assignments they could come up with. After Christmas, their schedules would be changed up, and whenever they reached their third year, they'd be expected to take on more classes as electives. The mere thought of it made Aileen want to crawl into her bed and sleep for an entire month.

Even with much of their time being occupied by scribbling down half-attempts of homework by the fireplaces in their common rooms (Aileen had brought Maxwell and Albus to the Slytherin common room a couple of times, Albus fascinated by the greenish glow and Maxwell afraid that a water monster might burst through one of the windows from the Great Lake), the three of them still found time to visit Hagrid. Albus and Maxwell would talk with him for hours, and Maxwell wanted to see his pet bear as often as he could, but Aileen would usually remain silent whenever they'd visit, not knowing that to say or do. She liked Hagrid well enough, but with Albus and Maxwell around, she felt like a third wheel that wouldn't be missed if it wasn't there.

And as she predicted, every meeting of the dueling club resulted in Scorpius challenging her to a duel. The two of them dragged out their fights, damaging parts of the chamber and lighting things ablaze. It was rare for a winner to actually come of one of their duels, but everyone looked forward to watching them.

It wasn't until the night before Halloween that she was reminded of her suspicions regarding Erika.

At about one 'o clock in the morning, Aileen was tossing and turning in her bed, dreaming about the hovering jack o' lanterns in the Great Hall. The pumpkins were talking to her, warning her that she shouldn't leave the castle at night, but of course, she didn't listen to them. They were just stupid pumpkins. What did they know?

Her wand drawn and her heart aching for adventure, Aileen made her way past the talking pumpkins and climbed out one of the windows. For some reason, she was headed towards the Forbidden Forest, and she reached it in no time. She found herself wandering through the trees and calling out for Erika, when suddenly, something ambushed her from behind; it was the shadow, with its gleaming red eyes and shark-like teeth baring at her, its crooked fingers clamping around her body and squeezing, tighter, and tighter, and tighter...

"Miss!"

Aileen jolted upwards with a start, her hands shooting forward and snatching up whatever was in front of her, but it wasn't the shadowy boggart. Now, she was sitting upright in her bed, her pajamas sticking to her sweaty back, and her hands were coiled around the dirty pillowcase that was Allister's garment. Aileen had lifted Allister off his feet upon grabbing him, hoisting him over her head by the collar and almost throwing him, but she didn't. Allister gazed down at her, looking shocked, and seconds later, she gently placed him on the mattress by her side, letting out a huge breath.

"Allister is sorry, Miss! Allister realized that you were having a nightmare, and he didn't want to make it worse, he didn't! But you ordered Allister to wake you whenever Miss Erika left the dormitory in the night, Miss!" Allister explained in a quick, quiet voice, not wanting to wake the other students.

"I did?" Aileen yawned.

"Why yes, Miss! You ordered Allister to wake you after Allister found Miss Erika looking at books in the library! Remember?" Allister reminded her.

Aileen recalled the instance now; a week ago, Allister had reported that he'd followed Erika all the way to the library, and that she'd almost been caught by Mr. Filtch. Allister had told Aileen that Erika was looking through the books in the library's restricted section, and Aileen responded by ordering Allister to wake her immediately the next time Erika left in the night.

"Allister followed her for a little while, Miss." Allister said. "Allister had forgotten about your new order, Miss, and he went to follow her, as he always did, Miss. Allister saw her leave the castle when he remembered that he was supposed to tell you immediately when she left, Miss!"

"Leave the castle?" Aileen whispered. "Why is she leaving the castle? Where is she going?"

"She left the castle at the clock tower's courtyard, Miss. Went off towards Sir Hagrid's hut, she did. But Allister doesn't think that she's going to visit Sir Hagrid. No, visiting Sir Hagrid would get her into trouble, it would. Miss Erika is probably going into the forest."

"Why?" Aileen wondered, remembering the scary stories that James and Fred had told over dinner about all the creatures in the forest. "Why would anyone go in there? Especially by themselves?"

"Allister doesn't know, Miss. But Allister worries for Miss Erika, Miss. He worries that she won't make it back!" Allister told her, a note of despair in his voice.

"Well, then." Aileen said, reaching her feet. "We'll just have to go after her, won't we?"

"Go after her?" Allister gasped, sounding astonished. "But you're just a first year, Miss! You don't have any protection! And the teachers! If the teachers see you, then you'll be in a lot of trouble, Miss! They are still looking for the boggart, Miss! The teachers might be patrolling right now!"

"Well, if I get caught, then I'll just tell the teachers about Erika, and they can handle it instead." Aileen replied. "I've got to try."

"But why, Miss? Why?"

Aileen thought on this. Why, indeed? Why was she getting involved with whatever Erika was up to? It was none of her business, and she had nothing to gain from meddling in something like this.

"There's a dark wizard on the loose right now, Allister. A dark wizard named Xyler," Aileen told him. "Xyler might have recruited some ex-Death Eaters as his followers, and there were a couple of Death Eaters in the Sayre family. Erika's family. Erika is doing something fishy, and she might be working for Xyler. Someone has to find out what she's doing. If she's snooping around Hogwarts under the orders of a dark wizard, then chances are, she's up to something big. Hogwarts isn't an easy place to infiltrate, and whatever she's after, she'll find it if someone doesn't stop her. We don't want another dark wizard rising to power, do we?"

"Of course not, Miss - but you shouldn't leave the castle all alone at night, Miss!" Allister pleaded. "Please, don't go to the forest! You could die, you could!"

Aileen stared at him. Yes, it would have been incredibly foolish to venture off to the Forbidden Forest - a magical forest inhabited by countless dangerous magical creatures - all alone at nighttime. But she needed to know what Erika was doing, and when else would she get the opportunity to catch her in the act?

"Okay, I have an idea. We'll go out there tomorrow night," Aileen said. "I'll have my friends meet me at the courtyard, and we'll all go to the forest together. We'll find whatever Erika is hiding out there."

"But what of the teachers, Miss? You can't get caught outside after hours, Miss."

"I guess we'll have to look through a spellbook, try to find a perception charm or something..."

"Perception charm, Miss?" Allister looked down and fidgeted with his pillowcase. "Allister knows how to alter perception, Miss..."

"You do?" Aileen asked excitedly. "Can you make us invisible? Or like ghosts?"

"No, Miss. Allister knows how to create a veil which will guide an onlooker's perception away, is all, Miss. It doesn't make you invisible, Miss. It simply makes you... unnoticed."

"That's perfect! Could you put that charm on us? Could you come with us tomorrow night?"

"Why, yes, Miss... but Allister isn't sure he can protect you from the forest, Miss..."

"You won't need to protect us. We'll be fine if we're watching each other's backs. Besides, we'll have a perception charm on us. That should keep the monsters away."

"Yes... Allister hopes that it works as well on monsters as it does on humans, Miss..."

Aileen was positively thrilled about her plan, but Allister didn't seem to like it at all. Nevertheless, the house elf agreed to leave Slytherin House at midnight tomorrow with her, and they would go to the forest in search of whatever Erika was hiding. Another hour and a half went by before she was finally able to get back to sleep.

The next day, Aileen met Maxwell and Albus at the Gryffindor table and waited for them to finish talking about how much they hated History of Magic before speaking to them. Once she got their attention, she told them everything; Erika sneaking off to the forest, Allister's ability, and the plan to search the forest.

"That's completely mad," Albus said after making sure that his brother and cousin weren't eavesdropping. "You want to sneak into the Forbidden Forest on Halloween night? Isn't that like putting yourself on a silver platter and offering for zombies to come out and eat your skin off?"

"The forest isn't just dangerous on Halloween night. It's dangerous _every_ night," Aileen replied.

"Yeah, so, why would you _ever_ want to go in there?" Albus asked.

"I told you about Erika's connection with a Death Eater, right?" Aileen said. "If she is working for a dark wizard, then shouldn't we try to stop her?"

Albus opened his mouth, but no argument came to him.

Maxwell hadn't spoken at all since Aileen arrived to breakfast; he was slouched over his plate, having barely touched his eggs and wearing an oddly irritable expression.

"Max?" Albus said, snapping two fingers in front of Maxwell's face. "Are you listening? Aileen wants to sneak into the Forbidden Forest tonight."

Maxwell cocked his head at them.

"We'll meet at the clock tower at midnight, okay? Bring your wands, and don't get caught," Aileen told them.

James's owl arrived to the table, and he started talking to Albus about the last letters they'd sent to their family, effectively ending Aileen's conversation. Later that day in Defense Against the Dark Arts class, Professor Crowley was giving a lecture about recognizing a troll from a giant, and Maxwell had fallen asleep on his desk. Aileen stole a few glances of Maxwell, noticing that he looked rather ill, and at the end of the class, she was about to follow her friends out of the room when Professor Crowley stopped her.

"Come here," Crowley said to her, waving her forward.

As the rest of the students left the room, Aileen approached Professor Crowley's desk.

Crowley's long fingers were intertwined as he leaned on his desk, his chin resting on his hands and his differently colored eyes watching the door, waiting for the classroom to empty before he spoke.

"I notice you don't really spend time with other girls in the class," he muttered. "You spend most of your time with those two boys. You care about them a lot, don't you?"

"No I don't," Aileen said too quickly, making a confused face as if she didn't understand what he was saying at all, but her cheeks turned a hot pink color, and Crowley laughed.

"I'm just kidding with you. Although, that one friend of yours, Maxwell... he doesn't seem all there today," Professor Crowley told her. "You might want to keep an eye on him."

Aileen didn't say anything.

Professor Crowley's gaze bore into hers, making her feel uneasy.

"It's a full moon tonight," he said. "A full moon brings out the worst in people sometimes. But... that's what their friends are there for, to keep an eye on them through the worst of it."

Aileen still didn't speak. She didn't have a clue what he was talking about.

"Off you go." Professor Crowley dismissed her.

Confused, Aileen wandered off.

The rest of the day was quiet.

Once nighttime rolled around, she couldn't even sit on her bed; the other students were studying in the common room or going to sleep while she paced back and forth in the space between her bed and the great glowing window, careful not to stub her toe on her open trunk. Ziggy's head weaved and wobbled to and fro as he watched her move back and forth. Desperate to keep herself busy until she was meant to leave, she settled for sitting beside her bed and working on her History of Magic homework after wrestling with the idea in her mind for about half an hour. When she sat cross legged and scribbled Gargoyle Strike of 1911 on the top of a sheet of parchment, she sighed, looking around and hoping to see any tiny distraction that would keep her from writing paragraphs on such a boring topic.

So, Aileen put herself on autopilot and began to write with her Sullivan & Associates ink pen quill, one that Albus had given her. Loose bits of information about the Gargoyle incident in 1911 floated through her mind as she jotted down whatever made some semblance of sense to her. Most of the parchment was filed when she ran out of ways to twist the same bits of history with different words, and she was expected to turn in two parchments on the subject, but luckily, a distraction showed up just in time to save her from opening her textbook.

The faint pitter-patter of Allister's footsteps sounded behind her. She turned to him, noting how nervous he looked, his big eyes stretched open wide and his hands clasping over each other, fidgeting anxiously with his pillowcase.

"It... it is eleven-thirty, Miss." Allister whispered, throwing a jumpy glimpse over to Erika's bed, where she lay sleeping and motionless. "Shall... shall we g-go, Miss...?"

Aileen nodded and tossed her parchment onto her bed, slipping her wand into her sleeve and pocketing her compass.

"So," she said very quietly. "How does the perception charm work?"

Allister swallowed a deep gulp, looked in ten different directions very nervously, then raised his hand and made a slow, smooth swiping motion, first over himself, then Ziggy, then Aileen, muttering the incantation under his breath as he did. _"Concelo, Concelo, Concelo..."_

Aileen was still able to see both of them, but the corners of her eyes were watery and blurred, making her feel as if she was gazing at the world from behind a very thin and invisible barrier. She lifted Ziggy and wrapped him around her neck, took Allister by the hand, and left the dormitory. Once they were in the hallway, Aileen was squinting closely at her compass, hardly able to see in the darkness but not wanting to conjure up a flame for light. She didn't want to risk getting caught; oddly, her goal of uncovering Erika's mysterious secrets was so alluring, she felt as if she had no choice but to meddle, and any interference from the teachers would only dampen her fun.

The night wasn't pitch black outside, however. The moon lightened the dark world, and Aileen felt exposed as she crossed the courtyard, clutching her compass with one hand and Allister's wrist with the other. A swift breeze gusted by as she went to the corner, where a pair of students stood hunched and hiding in the shadows of the pillars.

Allister moved forward and placed the perception charm on Maxwell and Albus. _"Concelo, Concelo..."_

Then, the lot of them moved onward, across the field and towards the trees. They entered the forest in no time, careful to meander around the view of Hagrid's window. The trees were spaced out, with vines dangling down and huge roots protruding from the ground beneath their feet, tripping them once every so often. Albus had his wand held upright. Maxwell was holding his wand too, but it hung by his side as he drudged along behind everyone else. Aileen gave him a look every few minutes, wondering why he was being so very distant with everyone. Perhaps he hadn't slept much. That would explain the faint cycles under his eyes. Traveling around at nighttime after midnight couldn't have been helping his tiredness, either.

None of them spoke for nearly half an hour.

There was nothing of particular interest in the forest so far, apart from the very far off crackling of sticks or shouts of a centaur. Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus wanted to talk to each other, but they all feared that they'd be discovered by something unpleasant if they made a noise, so they kept their mouths shut.

Each minute of silence gave Aileen a surging sensation of uneasiness, and when her legs began to throb and her sleepiness began to weigh on her, she started to consider that they weren't going to find anything, that maybe they were better off simply returning to the castle and going to bed before they'd get into trouble and lose points for each of their houses. The compass didn't seem to be leading her anywhere no matter how long she followed the arrow.

 _Come on,_ she silently begged the compass. _Lead me to it, whatever it is. Lead me to the secret!_

In the distance, a branch snapped in half. It sounded closer than all the other noises so far.

Allister let out a whimper. Albus stopped dead in his tracks, wand up high, and Maxwell scowled, baring his teeth and glaring around.

"Keep moving." Aileen told them.

Onward they went.

"M-M-Miss!" Allister stammered in a hoarse whisper, tugging on the side of her robe.

"Not now." Aileen said, not taking her eyes off her compass.

"B-b-but... M-Miss... it... it..."

"Not now, I said."

"B-b-but... it... it is _behind us_!"

Aileen whirled around, suddenly alarmed. Allister pointed frightfully backwards, between Albus and Maxwell and into the darkness, where a great, lumpy, four legged figure came into view further back, slowly following along the trail they'd been walking.

As much as Aileen wanted to run away at top speed, something told her that it would be a bad idea; this animal, whatever it was, would be provoked into chasing them if they ran. But, after seeing Maxwell and Albus break into a sprint, she didn't think to question it and went along with the tide. The three of them darted over roots and under branches as quickly as their feet would carry them, hearts thrashing behind their ribs and Aileen yanking Allister along behind her.

Aileen was able to hear the harsh galloping of the gigantic creature behind them. Maxwell yelled something, and Albus shot a spell behind them and missed the creature. Everything was happening so fast, so very fast, and Aileen didn't understand her next move at all. Her hand raised, and madly, stupidly, and nonsensically, she still went the direction her compass was pointing her, dashing ever nearer to whatever secrets were being held inside the Forbidden Forest. She didn't notice when the compass began to lead her away from her friends; Maxwell and Albus were disappearing off to her right, and Aileen streaked off by herself, running deeper and deeper into the forest, following the arrow of her compass, until-

 _Wham._

Her body collided with another.

Aileen gawked up in horror at the cloaked figure who she had smashed into.

The figure grabbed her and tossed her aside rather forcefully.

Aileen and Allister landed crookedly at the stump of a tree, Aileen wrapping her arms around the house elf and bracing for the worst.

The enormous beast that had been chasing her came into full view, its hideous body featuring a rather bulky goat's torso and a long, scaly tail, but the most terrifying aspect of the creature was easily its big, scraggly, hairy, horrible head, which looked to be one of a lion.

It snarled at Aileen, stepping closer to her and exhaling a low, terrible growl.

The hooded figure stepped in front of Aileen and charged at the monster. It wrapped its arms around the beast's neck, holding on despite the desperate bucking and lunging done by the creature.

Then, something else happened, the last thing Aileen had expected.

The hooded figure opened its mouth up wide and sank its teeth into the monster's neck, latching on with a strength that would make a cobra's bite seem like a friendly nibble from a hamster. Deeper and deeper the hooded man's teeth bore, and the monster let out a wicked, earsplitting howl. It remained this way for a minute or so, and gradually, the monster began to lose strength, bucking and howling less and less as the hooded man drained the blood from its grotesque body. At long last, the creature finally went limp, and the hooded man dropped its fresh carcass onto the ground.

The vampire's fangs shone crimson under the moonlight as he set his eyes on Aileen.


	10. Trocar's Secret & Erika's Reveal

The vampire slithered over the ground, shuffling around sticks and leaves with its long cloak as it moved towards Aileen and the house elf.

Aileen wrapped around Allister like a cocoon, her heart bashing into the back of the elf's head as she held him close to her chest, both of them staring wide eyed and horrified up at the hooded bloodsucker. It loomed over them, two lines of blood running down either side of its mouth, its teeth clenching, its two differently colored eyes fixating on them...

The vampire held up one of its long fingers to its lips. _"Shhh."_

Then, something in Aileen's mind clicked, and she gazed in astonishment up at the hooded man as if he'd just fallen from outer space.

 _She recognized him._

"You..." the hooded vampire uttered in a deep, low, broken up voice. "You... will... tell... _no... one_."

The voice was familiar to her as well. But it couldn't be... it _couldn't_ be...

Maxwell and Albus could be heard sprinting over the landscape towards them, and they both skidded to a stop next to the mound of fur and scales that was the freshly killed creature. Professor Crowley had swiftly removed the blood from his face by wiping it onto his black sleeve before removing his hood and turning to the boys.

"Out after hours," Crowley growled menacingly, leering between them all. "And venturing through the Forbidden Forest, no less. Do you have _any idea_ what kind of creatures lurk in these woods? This is a Chimera. You're lucky I followed you, or you would have been a late night snack for a very vicious creature. I cannot _believe_ that you first years thought it would be a good idea to explore the most dangerous part of the school grounds, alone at night with no protection. And _you_!" He spun around and jabbed a finger at Allister, who squeaked fearfully in response. " _You_ escorted these students out here? You are a Hogwarts employee, Allister! I expected much more from you. You think that I can't see the little concealment charm you put on the children? I know they're not capable of that kind of magic yet. You could be banished from Hogwarts for this kind of behavior. Those sorts of charms don't work on me, in any case. My enchanted eye can see all things. _Finite, Finite, Finite..."_

Mr. Crowley waved his wand over all of their heads, lifting Allister's perception charm from them. He kicked the dead Chimera, just to make sure that it was finished off, then turned on his heel and glared down at the students. As shocked as Aileen had been to discover that Mr. Crowley was a vampire, she still hated the disappointment that was oozing off of him, hated that look of dissatisfaction that he gave them. It made her feel like the scum of the earth.

"A Chimera?!" Albus exclaimed, looking at the gigantic body. "How did you kill it?"

"I used to be an Auror. I know a thing or two," Mr. Crowley replied, gesturing with his wand. "Come now. Follow me. You're in a heap of trouble, all of you."

Professor Crowley began to lead the children out of the forest, and as they all walked in downheartened silence, Aileen and Allister swapped confounded glances. The way Crowley was talking, and the way that Albus and Maxwell were acting - exhausted and scared, but not at all confused - it seemed that neither Albus nor Maxwell had noticed that Crowley had two long vampiric fangs, that he hadn't killed the Chimera with magic, and that he had apparently been keeping a very dark and dangerous secret from everyone in Hogwarts. Aileen and Allister were the only two who knew his secret, and Aileen anxiously wondered what that would mean for them.

When they exited the forest and walked across the field, Professor Crowley brought them to a stop in the clock tower's courtyard.

"Would any of you like to explain to me _why_ you were in the Forbidden Forest?" he demanded.

Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus all traded eyes.

Just when Aileen and Albus were about to reply with a fanciful lie, Maxwell spoke.

"They... took me into the woods... because... they thought I was going to... to..." he stammered, rubbing his tired eyes with his knuckles. "To... transform."

Professor Crowley stared silently at Maxwell.

Aileen and Albus tried to hide their befuddlement at hearing this.

"M... my friends took me into the woods, because... because..." Maxwell murmured. "Because I'm a... a... half breed. I... I got it from my dad."

"A half-breed..." Professor Crowley said, glimpsing up at the full moon, then back. "Do you know how uncommon a half-and-half condition is for a werewolf, son? Usually, a werewolf's child will either inherit the full condition, or none of it. Are you sure you're a half breed?"

Maxwell nodded sadly, and Aileen suspected that - judging by the look on his face - he wasn't simply making up a lie to cover for his friends. He was, at least partially, telling the truth. Was Maxwell's father really a werewolf? Did he really inherit part of the sickness from his father? Why didn't she know any of this about him, even after knowing him for years? Perhaps she should have asked more questions. Now that she thought about it, she'd never inquired about him, his personal life, or his family before at all...

"It's unusual for a half-breed to transform," Professor Crowley told Maxwell. "Why did you think that you would transform tonight? Are you ill? Under a lot of stress?"

"Y-yes, all of those things, yes," Maxwell replied with vigorous nodding, and Aileen was able to see the clear transition from truth-telling into lying.

"Very well," Professor Crowley sighed. "I will speak with our potions master about having a potion made for you, just in case you have any incidents. That way, if you transform, you will not lose yourself to the wolfmind. But... I must impress upon you all that you cannot be allowed to wander the castle at night, much less run off to the Forbidden Forest. I will be writing to your families tomorrow, and you will all serve a week of detention. Thirty points will be taken from each of your houses. Come on."

Professor Crowley took them all inside, escorted Maxwell back to Hufflepuff House, took Albus to Gryffindor Tower, and then headed for the gigantic statue which would take them to the headmaster's office. Aileen suddenly felt sick. Why did Crowley take Maxwell and Albus back to their houses, but not her? Why was he taking her to Arius's office? This didn't feel right at all...

Allister was still by her side, sprinting with several pitter-patters to keep up with her strides.

After they rode the magic stairs up to the headmaster's office, they found Arius lying on his back over his desk, allowing Zeus the dragon to drop Bertie Bots Every Flavored Beans into his mouth one by one. The dragon was standing on two legs on the headmaster's stomach, but when Arius realized that he had company, he sat bolt upright and sent the dragon tumbling onto the floor, as well as a handful of candy beans.

"You look terrible," Arius said to Crowley. "Is it your time of the month again? Ha!"

He snickered at his little joke, but Crowley frowned in a manner most serious.

"It is, as a matter of fact," Professor Crowley stated grimly, his eyes falling onto Aileen. "The moon stirs my blood on nights like this, makes me restless… and she…"

Professor Arius looked to Aileen as well. "Oh, Aileen, we've _got_ to stop having late night visits from you. What have you done now?"

"She saw me," Professor Crowley informed. "In the forest, she... she saw me. Allister saw me, too."

The color started to drain from Professor Arius's face, making him look almost as pale as Crowley.

"She _saw_ you?" Arius exhaled. "How did she see you if you were in the forest?"

"Because _she_ was in the forest. Her friend has a rare half-and-half condition, a werewolf bisection he inherited from his father. Aileen took him into the woods, just to keep him away from the school in case he were to transform this full moon. That's when... she saw me," Professor Crowley explained.

Professor Arius' gaze rested on Aileen again, though now, he looked much more severe.

For a brief moment, Aileen considered telling them the truth, that she had gone into the forest to find whatever Erika was hiding out there, but she didn't say a word.

"You understand," Arius began, "that nobody else in the school is aware of Professor Crowley's condition, yes?"

Aileen nodded.

"And you understand why such information should be kept secret, yes? It's prudent that you keep this information to yourself," Arius said. "Vampires are not all dangerous and evil creatures. Some of them, like your friend, are just unfortunate enough to have obtained the condition like a sickness, and it's just something they have to deal with. Professor Crowley is a wonderful teacher, but if anyone were to learn about his sickness, well... they would take it the wrong way. Understand?"

"Yeah," Aileen agreed. "So... you knew about this? You knew about him being a..." She peeked up at Professor Crowley, but he wasn't looking at her.

"I did know. I've known him for a very long time," Professor Arius answered, flashing a smile at Crowley. "He was my best friend when we were students here. I've kept his secret for as long as I can remember, and I don't intend to change that. I want you to do show him the same kindness. Can you do that?"

Aileen nodded again.

Professor Crowley was staring rather intensely at one of the books on a nearby shelf, seeming not to pay the conversation any mind.

"Well, good then. Problem solved," Arius said. "Now, there's just the issue of you leaving your dormitory after hours again. I warned you about that once already."

"I've already given her her punishments," Professor Crowley told him without making eye contact. "She will receive detention, and I've taken points from her house."

"Very well, then. And don't forget, young lady. This is a very important secret, and it must be kept secret," Professor Arius said forwardly, narrowing his shiny eyes at her.

Aileen nodded a third time. She wasn't looking forward to detention, and she expected that her fellow Slytherins would be upset about the point loss, but this wasn't as bad as she had expected. It was certainly better than being eaten by a Chimera...

"And you," Professor Crowley grumped, rounding on Allister. "You are forbidden to ever, ever, _ever_ mention my condition to anyone. Do I make myself clear?"

"Y-y-yes sir," Allister squawked.

At that, Professor Crowley grouchily nudged Aileen towards the exit. When they left the headmaster's office, Aileen was faintly able to hear Professor Arius singing a tune to himself as he laid on top of his desk again, patting on his stomach and motioning for Zeus to rejoin him. The tune sounded something like " _You little wonder, little wonder you_..."

Professor Crowley walked in silence as he led Aileen and Allister back to the Slytherin dungeon. To Aileen, this was very strange and different; usually, whenever she was in the company of Professor Crowley, she was in a good mood. Crowley would be teaching her how to use her favorite spells, and she'd be eagerly practicing them, sometimes utilizing them in the dueling club and getting praised for it. He was her favorite teacher in the whole school. Now, however, he wasn't talking to her, looking at her, or even acknowledging that she was there. When they reached the wall that led to Slytherin's common room, he didn't even wait to make sure she went inside. The moment that Aileen and Allister stopped in front of the wall, Professor Crowley had stormed down the hall and disappeared behind a corner, leaving them by their lonesome.

Aileen spoke the password and entered the common room with Allister, taking the guidance compass from her pocket and glaring at it.

In the forest, she had asked the compass to lead her to a secret.

Perhaps she should have been more specific.

* * *

The week of detention was far worse than Aileen had expected. She, Maxwell, and Albus were stuck in Hendon's room for three hours after the classes were over, writing lines until six in the evening, which was the exact time that the dueling club began. Every afternoon that week, the three of them would have to bolt across the castle just to arrive to the club meeting ten minutes late. In the classes and in the dueling club, Aileen and Professor Crowley didn't speak directly to each other if they could help it. Aileen wasn't talkative in his class anymore, and she didn't ask for help on her assignments the way she used to. Although Professor Binns was strangely absent from the History of Magic room during detention (Hendon was praying that he had finally crossed into the afterlife), Professor Hendon was not much different from Binns in any way, apart from the fact that he had a pulse. Hendon was a wrinkled old man with a drawling voice, a boring method of teaching, and a dreadful insistence to keep his lessons as painfully uninteresting as Binns' had been. When Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus finished their lines, Professor Hendon would give them an assignment for History of Magic for extra credit. But, in their opinion, no credit was worth the deadly boredom they were forced to endure.

"Are you... are you _really_ a werewolf?" Aileen finally managed to ask Maxwell on the first weekend since their forest adventure.

Maxwell, who was more or less back to his old self, smiled, shrugged, and took a chicken leg from the large plate in front of him. This conversation took place during Saturday night dinner in the Great Hall.

"I'm a bisect," Maxwell told her. "That's what my dad told me. I'm not really a werewolf, but... I have some traits in common with a werewolf. I'm a half-and-half."

"Can you transform?" Albus asked interestedly.

"Sometimes," Maxwell replied. "I've only transformed once. It happened when I was five."

That was all the information about Maxwell's condition that they would get out of him, because Maxwell became far too interested in his dinner.

The next week, nothing exciting happened. Allister continued to wake Aileen whenever Erika would sneak out in the night, but Aileen had given up on following her for the time being. The last thing she needed was to be tempted to make another late night visit to the forest. The Defense Against the Dark Arts classes, interesting as they were, remained less exciting than they used to be, as Aileen wasn't able to look Professor Crowley in the face anymore. The same could be said about the dueling club. Many times, Aileen would consider telling Maxwell and Albus about Professor Crowley's secret, but each time, she decided against it. She was sure that they would keep the information to themselves, but she didn't want to break the promise she had made to Professor Arius. After learning that Professor Arius was a close friend of Crowley's, and that he had been keeping his vampiric nature a secret for many years, she had a newfound respect for the headmaster.

Although, despite her desperate attempts to shrug off her feelings of discomfort caused by Professor Crowley, Aileen found it difficult whenever he would give her a low grade on an assignment, or when he would correct her spelling or verbal incantations. Each instance reminded her of that look of disappointment he'd had strewn along his face that night in the forest, and she despised that memory. All of them could have been killed by a Chimera, and it would have been entirely her fault if they had. That disappointed visage of his reminded her of that fact more than anything else. The scolding letter that her father had written to her didn't help her to feel better, either. These feelings of guilt kept her from showing interest in Erika for weeks. It wasn't until the month of December when she decided that she would investigate Erika's secrets again the next chance that she got.

In the second week of December, Aileen got her opportunity.

On a Thursday afternoon after the last class of the day had ended, Aileen, Maxwell, and Albus were on their way to visit Hagrid and to play with Maxwell's pet bear, Julie. When they crossed their favorite courtyard, they found themselves walking under a flurry of snow, and someone was standing in the middle of the clearing, waiting for them. Aileen immediately recognized the big ears and the three-foot-tall stature.

It was Allister, standing shaking like a leaf with his feet buried in snow and hugging a rather large book in his arms.

"A-A-Allister has s-something for you, Miss!" the house elf squeaked. "It-it is a book, Miss, a book that might help your curiosities, Miss!"

"What are you doing out here? You must be freezing," Aileen said.

"Indeed, y-y-yes, Miss!" Allister nodded. "Allister w-waited for you out here, Miss. Allister noticed that you occupy this courtyard a lot, Miss!"

"What book is that?" Aileen asked as she, Maxwell, and Albus gave the elf a curious overlooking.

"It is a b-book that Miss Erika once used, Miss!" Allister told her. "She t-t-took this book from the restricted section all those weeks ago, Miss! And she only recently returned it, Miss! So Allister t-t-took the book when nobody was looking! Here you go!"

Allister held the big book up to her, and she took it. This book was extremely new and in wonderful condition, and the cover was decorated with colorful drawings of swords, wands, and other items that looked to be magical in nature. The curly lettering on it read; Mystical Magical Artifacts.

Aileen flipped the book open, and it fell onto page 465 instantly, revealing that a folded piece of parchment was wedged on this page to serve as a bookmark. Aileen removed the bookmark and read over the page thoroughly, first examining the picture (which seemed to be a photograph of a very long, beautiful sword), then reading the title aloud.

"The sword of Godric Gryffindor?"

Aileen faced the boys, and they both looked just as lost as she did.

Erika had used this book, and she'd left a bookmark on a page that was dedicated to the sword of Godric Gryffindor. Why was she interested in the sword of Gryffindor? What did this have to do with the boggart in the school, or her sneaking off at night, or her trip into the Forbidden Forest?

"Thanks, Allister," Aileen said. "Go into my dormitory and warm up, okay?"

"Thank you, Miss!"

Allister darted into the castle, and the trio went to Hagrid's hut. While Albus and Maxwell were talking, Aileen was skimming over the book.

Hagrid was behind his hut, teasing Julie - and a couple of other large creatures that none of them really recognized - with a slice of dragon meat. Maxwell wrestled with his pet for a while, and Albus carried on a conversation with Hagrid about his father's work. Aileen sat with her back against the hut and the book open on her lap, and she read the page in full.

 _Fashioned over a thousand years ago by the finest Goblin silversmith of the age, Ragnuk the First, the Sword of Gryffindor is made from pure silver, and is ingrained with rubies. This sword was created to Godric Gryffindor's own particular specifications, and it contains a variety of magical properties, many of them seen throughout history, some of them still undiscovered. Despite claims of ownership made upon the sword, this magical relic holds a sense of sentience, and will usually present itself to any worthy Gryffindor in need of its services. Being one of the most powerful Goblin-made artifacts in the world, the sword has the ability to take on anything that will make it stronger after coming into contact with it. It has been confirmed to take on the magical properties of anything it has slain, and it is rumored to have inherited part of its temperament from a slain werewolf in 1769. Like few other magical artifacts, the Sword of Godric Gryffindor is said to be one of the only magical weapons in the world capable of destroying or countering many of the darkest forms of magic. It is capable of repelling an unforgivable curse, resisting attempts to break it, and destroying items infected with dark magic. The ability to destroy items containing dark magic came about after it adopted the properties of basilisk venom..._

The more Aileen read, the more confused she became. If Erika was in league with a dark wizard, then why would she show any interest in this sword? The Sword of Gryffindor sounded like the very opposite of what a dark wizard would desire. It seemed to be designed specifically to combat dark magic, certainly not to aid it in any way.

Without speaking to Hagrid, Maxwell, or Albus, Aileen wracked her brain about Godric's sword. After some time went by, they all headed off to the windowed chamber where the dueling club was held. Professor Crowley was also lost in a book, and most of the students in the dueling club had already arrived, though the duels hadn't started yet.

Aileen looked up from her book, and rather than meeting Scorpius with a competitive glare like she usually did in the beginning of the club meeting, her eyes went immediately to Erika, who stood near the elongated table where the duels took place, gazing upward at the ceiling of the chamber. She seemed to be staring up at the stray bat, which was hanging upside down near one of the huge windows. Aileen had seen the bat in that same spot many times by now, and she'd long given up on recapturing it. Her attention was on Erika, and the longer she glared at the back of her head, the more frustrated she became.

Erika was up to something. That much was obvious. But to Aileen, nothing that Erika was doing made any sense. Where could she have been going on the nights that she sneaked out of the dormitory? She couldn't have been going to the library every night. She would have been caught by now if that had been the case. Why was she reading about the Sword of Gryffindor? And why did she visit the Forbidden Forest at nighttime?

Now, Aileen was sick and tired of side-stepping Erika and investigating from the shadows. She wanted more than anything to get an answer out of the girl, rather than secretly playing detective only to drum up no leads and find no answers. Her quest to uncover Erika's suspicious activities hadn't given her any answers at all. It had only raised more questions.

Was she frustrated at being left in the dark, her attempts at discovering the truth all having failed so far? Or was it perhaps because Erika was, apart from Scorpius, the only first year who might have been stronger than her? Neither answer was particularly comforting, and every reason that Aileen had to be angry at Erika melded together, fusing into a whirlpool of envious fury, making her next move an entirely subconscious one.

Before Professor Crowley even bothered to start the official club meeting, Aileen climbed onto the table, her wand drawn, her eyes changing into a wicked crimson color as they burned into Erika. Many of the students peered up at her curiously. Erika gave her a look of intrigue.

"Come on," Aileen said to Erika. "Come up here. Let's practice."

Erika obliged.

The two girls took stances, not bothering to bow. Professor Crowley had only just looked up from his book when the duel started.

 _"Expelliarmus!"_

 _"Protego!"_

They took turns deflecting disarming spells, and at once, the entire chamber went quiet, all of them watching the duel.

Aileen hadn't dueled Erika until now; Erika seemed to be a prodigy, someone who had learned a thing or two before even attending school, someone who's cunning and instincts would put even some of the best Slytherins to shame. But Aileen was done avoiding her. Now, she would give it everything she had.

 _"Ambustum!"_ Erika called out. Her wand sent an almost invisible streak of power across the room, and Aileen wasn't able to see it until it was too late.

The curse hit Aileen directly in the left forearm, and at once, she felt a terrible searing sensation eating at her skin. Her robe had been singed as if it had recently caught on fire, and her arm now harbored a rather severe-looking burn mark.

A couple of embers flickered out of the end of Aileen's Sycamore, and she glared heatedly at Erika.

"Where did you learn that one?" Aileen yelled. "A burning spell? That's not something a first year should know how to do. Who taught it to you? A dark wizard?"

Erika, visibly irritated by the question, shot off another spell.

 _"Confundo!"_

 _"Protego!"_

Aileen deflected the spell, shooting it off to the side and taking a chunk out of the wall. A few nearby students ducked for cover.

"Where did you learn how to duel? Who taught you that?" Aileen continued to pester. "Seems pretty weird for a kid like you to have combative training already."

"Shut up!" Erika hissed. _"Obscuro!"_

Erika's next spell made everything go black - or at least, that's what Aileen was able to perceive. A blindfold had materialized around her head, blocking her vision, and Erika seized her chance to catch Aileen off guard.

 _"Ambustum!"_

Another agonizing pain erupted on Aileen's body, this time on her shin. Erika was about to cast the burning spell a third time when Aileen finally managed to yank the blindfold off.

 _"Ambus-"_

 _"INCENDIO!"_

Aileen blasted a wave of fire at Erika. Furious and impatient, Aileen saw no reason to withdraw the attack or to try to control the fire; the flames licked half of Erika's body, and she sprinted away several steps before she could be too seriously scorched.

"Why don't you tell everyone where you're going when you sneak out at night? Huh?!" Aileen screamed, tears forming in her eyes as her third degree burns felt to be eating through her body. "Why don't you tell everyone how you learned all those spells? Why don't you tell everyone why you're so interested in the Sword of Godric Gryffindor? Why don't you tell everyone WHY YOU'RE WORKING FOR XYLER!"

Everyone was listening with rapt attentiveness. Many mouths dropped open, gasps could be heard, and whispers broke out.

Professor Crowley had leaped to his feet, ready to stop the duel, but he took in everything Aileen said, looking troubled.

Erika, aware of everyone's lingering eyes and not at all happy about being confronted in front of all of them, attacked again.

 _"Immobul-"_

 _"INCENDIO!"_

Again, Aileen's wand exploded with fire. This time, the wave of flames engulfed Erika completely.

"ENOUGH! _FINITE INCANTATEM_!" Professor Crowley bellowed, making all of the fire disappear with the flick of his wand.

Erika's robes held small, charred burn marks, but she was relatively undamaged. It was Aileen who had suffered the real injuries. But, with everyone in the chamber gawking up at Erika as if she had just been announced the heir of Slytherin, Aileen figured that she had accomplished her goal well enough. Now, Aileen wouldn't be the only person who knew about Erika's misdoings.

The entire school would know before the day was over.


	11. Christmas

The month of December wasn't as fun as Aileen planned for it to be.

Professor Crowley had carried her to the hospital wing after her dangerous duel with Erika, and Mad'am Pomfrey administered a thick, orangeish paste to her burns in order to heal them. Aileen was bedridden for almost a week while the paste sizzled and seeped into her wounds. Maxwell and Albus were the first to visit her on the day she received her injuries, and they brought her the borrowed copy of Mystical Magical Artifacts that she had previously been reading. As the days passed, Aileen suspected that Crowley might visit her, but he never did. On her last day in the Hospital Wing, however, she was surprised to wake up to Professor Arius standing at her bedside. He hovered over her, holding a lump of flesh and cloth under one of his arms. It took her a moment to realize that it was Allister, dangling from Arius' grasp and looking worriedly between the headmaster and Aileen.

"Morning sunshine," Arius said. "A little birdy told me some interesting stories about you. Not to mention, your little confrontation with Erika in the dueling club is all the rage right now. Everyone's talking about it. Would you care to explain?"

Aileen, her hairs askew and her eyes barely open, sat upright in the bed and yawned.

"Um... she hit me with burning spells," Aileen moaned. "And... and I made a wall of fire, so... so, I guess people just thought it was cool, or something...?"

" _Wrongo_!" Arius exclaimed, tossing Allister onto Aileen's bed and making him do several flips before tumbling onto the floor. "You see - every house elf in this school answers to me above everyone else. If I give them an order that contradicts an order given to them by a student or another teacher, then they're obliged to obey me above their other masters. So... by wording a few questions very particularly... I was able to get quite a tale out of Allister, here."

Allister whined and whimpered behind the bed. Aileen said nothing.

"You're not the only student who's been sneaking out of Slytherin House at night. There are others," Arius said. "Erika's snuck out on multiple occasions, according to the gossip... and Allister informed me that Scorpius Malfoy snuck out at least once, is that right?"

Aileen nodded.

"And apparently, you have a powerful opinion on the matter," Arius went on. "You accused Erika of working for Xyler."

There was a pause. Aileen looked down at her blankets.

"Xyler is a mysterious entity, and finding his allies is almost as hard as finding him," Arius said. "Not much is known about him, apart from the fact that he enjoys breaking into wizarding shops and rummaging through their belongings. His motives are a mystery, as well as his allies, but it's highly unlikely that his friends would consist of any eleven-year-olds who're attending this school."

"But... her family," Aileen replied. "She had a Death Eater in her family, and..."

"Lots of people have had Death Eaters in their families," Arius told her. "It doesn't mean anything."

"What about her sneaking out at night? Why is she doing that?"

"Well, Allister tells me that she makes a lot of trips to the library at night. Perhaps she's sneaking out so she can read some of the books in the restricted section without getting into trouble."

"Yeah, but why would she do that if she wasn't up to something?"

"Aileen..." Arius sat on her bedside and sighed. "The teachers have been extra vigilant since the boggart incident. Oh, and Professor Crowley found our runaway boggart yesterday, by the way. Got rid of it in a jiffy. But anyway... my point is, the teachers have all been on high alert ever since you found that boggart. If anything sinister is going on, then believe me, it won't be going on for long."

"But... Xyler is looking for something, isn't he?" Aileen said. "He's breaking into all those places because he's looking for something, right? What if the thing he's looking for is locked up in a place that he can't get to? A place that nobody can break into? A place like Hogwarts. He'd need a student to do his dirty work for him inside the walls, like a double agent. He'd need a student to gather information in the school, so he could find out if what he's looking for is here or not. What if he's looking for something that's being kept inside the school? It's happened before, hasn't it? Albus told me all about Professor Quarrel and the Sorcerer's Stone-"

"And we're preparing for that possibility, Aileen. We've already questioned Erika, and we've talked to her parents as well," Arius informed. "So far, we've found nothing suspicious about her or her family."

"But she had a Death Eater in her fam-"

"Yes, and Erika's parents were the ones who put Andy Sayre in Azkaban once they found out about his alliance."

Aileen gaped at him.

"Her parents are very good people," Arius said. "Not Death Eaters, not Voldemort sympathizers, not dark in any sense of the word."

"Then why is she so...?" Aileen mumbled to herself. The creepy, quiet, dark-haired, empty-eyed witch with the albino cobra as a pet was raised by a pair of upstanding wizardly individuals? How could Erika have turned out the way she did if her parents raised her to be good? Aileen couldn't imagine it.

"I'm guessing that it was Andy's influence on her, and her brother's, too," Arius replied. "When Andy was placed in Azkaban, he escaped during one of the prison breaks during Voldemort's second reign. No one's seen Andy Sayre for nearly twenty years. But Erika's parents had their own son put in prison, too. After Voldemort was vanquished and after Andy disappeared, Erika's older brother began to act out."

"Act out? Like how?" Aileen asked curiously.

Arius stared at her for a moment, let out another sigh, and continued.

"Erika's brother was close to Andy. He believed in blood purity, and he abided strongly by the doctrines that Andy adopted from Lord Voldemort. He tried to carry on the legacy through himself. He harbored a deep distaste for muggles. He would vandalize their homes, abuse them... and all without care for being caught, to beat it all."

"He hated muggles?" Aileen asked. "I thought Voldemort and his followers hated muggle-borns... people with dirty blood. I didn't know they hated regular muggles too."

"The philosophy of wizard supremacy has many fine lines, I'm afraid," Arius said solemnly. "Anyone who isn't a pureblooded wizard is something unclean and undeserving of life in the eyes of Voldemort and his most faithful followers."

"What was Erika's brother's name?" Aileen wondered.

"Bates. Bates Sayre," Arius responded. "He died in Azkaban."

"So, Erika might be doing the same thing her brother was doing. She might be trying to carry on the pureblood legacy,too, couldn't she?"

"Bates was a twenty-five-year-old sociopath who dropped out of school to terrorize muggle communities, and Erika is just an eleven-year-old girl who's trying to get an education. Just because her brother went down a path of destruction doesn't mean that she's doomed to do the same thing."

"But... there could be a connection, couldn't there?"

"If there is, then we'll find out, and we'll take care of it.," Arius told her straightly. "You don't need to get involved any more than you already have. You've crossed paths with a chimera and a boggart, and you got covered in third degree burns. The school year is barely halfway over with. Usually students don't come face to face with death as often as this, not even in Hogwarts. You're putting yourself in danger, and nobody wants you to get hurt. Do I make myself clear?"

Aileen gulped and nodded.

Arius patted her gently on the shoulder, stood, and left the room. Allister didn't follow him.

Once the headmaster was gone, the house elf crawled slowly and sulkily onto the bed beside Aileen, his ears hanging low, his eyes watery, and his whimpering having yet to stop.

"I'm not mad at you," Aileen told Allister. "I know you have to follow his orders. You had to tell him. He keeps you employed."

Allister sniffled loudly into his arm.

Aileen revealed the large copy of Mystical Magical Artifacts from underneath her blanket and turned to the page that her parchment had bookmarked, the page about the Sword of Gryffindor. She'd read over it numerous times since she was brought into the hospital wing, as she had nothing better to do, apart from the schoolwork that Albus and Maxwell brought to her. It was still strange to her that any dark wizard would want an object of such honor-bound power, but Aileen had learned at least one helpful thing about the sword.

The sword had a history of presenting itself to anyone worthy of wielding it, and it had appeared inside of the Sorting Hat when it presented itself to Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom during Voldemort's second reign. According to the book, the method of retrieving the sword was, in fact, inside of the school this very moment. If Erika was after the Sword of Gryffindor, then she would undoubtedly be looking for ways to nick the Sorting Hat from Professor Arius' office. Perhaps that was why she would sneak out at night, to research different ways to steal a magical item from a powerful wizard inside of one of the most secure buildings in the wizard world. Either Erika was planning to simply steal the sword, or she was going to steal the next best thing; the item which presents the sword to its wielders.

Aileen's eyes lingered on one of the many pictures in the book. It was a picture of the Sorting Hat.

"I think I know what I want for Christmas."

* * *

As luck would have it, Aileen's burns were completely healed just in time for the holidays to start.

Christmas break began, and she wouldn't have to worry about attending classes for two weeks. Maxwell and Albus were both happy to see her, and she was taken back when James slapped a hand on her back and congratulated her on a 'duel well done.' He and Fred took turns complimenting her on her ability to withstand lethal burns, and to make matters even more enjoyable, everyone was trading exaggerated speculations about Erika's misdoings. The most ridiculous rumor that Aileen heard was that Erika was leaving her dormitory at night to converse with snakes in the Chamber of Secrets, and the snakes were the children of the basilisk that once belonged to Salazar. The rumors were outlandish, of course, but Aileen couldn't help but snicker with joy every time she heard them. When she moved through the crowd of first years in order to get to dinner on the last Saturday before Christmas, Erika passed her and shot her a very nasty look. Some of the students were hissing mockingly at Erika and pretending to speak Parseltongue. Aileen laughed along with them, not bothered by the glare of disdain at all.

That night, Aileen had a restless sleep. She tossed and turned under her covers, her dream plaguing her with frightening images of the ghostly boggart. Aileen ran, and after a while, she found that she was no longer in Hogwarts. She was instead standing in the middle of her father's carnival back in Ireland, and the ghostly boggart was no longer ghostly at all; it stopped behind her, taking the form of a tall, slender man, its body cloaked in black, its head hooded, and its face entirely void... apart from a pair of searing red eyes, human eyes, glaring out at her...

The dream ended when Melody, Aileen's mother, darted in between them and dove in front of the hooded man, her arms spread open protectively in front of her daughter.

The hooded man's arm thrusted forward, directly through Melody's heart.

Melody was dead before she hit the ground.

Aileen gasped and sat bolt upright in her bed, a cold sweat gluing her pajamas to her body.

Her fingers instinctively began to stroke the locket around her neck, the one her mother had given to her.

Immediately, Aileen wanted more than anything to write to her family. The last two letters that she'd sent to her mother and father had gotten no responses. Aileen didn't think that her parents were ignoring her. They were both rather busy most of the time, and they probably hadn't found time to write her back yet. Now, however, she wanted to get a letter from them, to communicate with them somehow and to make sure they were okay. She'd never been separated from her parents for this long before now, and she'd never had a nightmare about one of them dying before, either. Maybe it was the anxiety getting to her. She wasn't used to living away from her parents, after all.

After throwing on her robes, Aileen left the dormitory and went to the Great Hall for breakfast. Rather than talking to Maxwell or Albus, she pulled out a piece of parchment and began to scribble a note for her parents.

 _Hey, Mum & Dad._

 _I was just wondering if you're gonna come see me for Christmas? A lot of the other kids already left to go visit their families for the holidays. I didn't get the chance to ask if you were gonna bring me home for the holidays or not. A lot of stuff has been happening here. I wanna tell you all about it._

 _Write me back soon, please? I love you._

Once she was finished, Aileen concealed the short letter in an envelope and left the Great Hall without eating breakfast. She went to the owlery, borrowed one of the school's owls, and sent it off with her letter, hoping that it would reach Ireland before nightfall. Afterwards, Aileen wandered around the school by herself aimlessly, without Maxwell or Albus by her side, without Ziggy around her neck, and without Allister trailing along at her ankles. She hadn't wandered around alone since her time at the O'Heidin Carnival. Back then, it seemed normal to wander around alone. Now, however, it made her feel out of place. Usually, Maxwell and Albus would be trading conversation behind her, or Ziggy would be stealing warmth from the skin of her throat, or Allister would be squeaking at her with updates about Erika...

Aileen found herself in the hallway leading to the clock tower's courtyard, and she stopped dead in her tracks when she spotted someone standing further down the hall, directly opposite her.

It was Erika, with her white cobra draped over her shoulders, her stance oddly rigid, her hands balled into fists, and her eyes glaring hatefully into Aileen.

Aileen raised her eyebrows. "What? What the hell do you want?"

"I _want_ you to stay out of my business," Erika snapped. "What's your problem? What did I ever do to you?"

"You wouldn't get so defensive if you didn't have something to hide," Aileen replied.

"Everyone in this school is harassing me because of you," Erika said. "You've got everyone thinking that I'm a dark witch!"

"Because you _are_ one," Aileen quipped back. "I was just being honest."

"You have _no idea_ what I am," Erika seethed, reaching for her side, where an elegant black sheathe sat encasing her expensive wand. "I'm warning you. Stay the hell out of my business, or I'll hex you until you beg for death, you meddling little bitch."

Aileen became furious in an instant. At once, she drew her Sycamore from her sleeve.

 _"Incendio!"_

 _"Hominum Exumai!"_

This time, Aileen's fire spell wasn't large or uncontrollable; it was a fast, precise streak of fire, and it shot forward like a bullet, searing the side of Erika's arm and making her pet snake hiss in defense. Erika's spell, too, hit its mark; it hit Aileen directly in the stomach, sending her flying backwards several yards and tumbling awkwardly and painfully onto the floor.

Aileen was scrambling to her feet when Erika prepared to fire off another spell, but before the fight could rage on, a third person intervened.

 _"Expelliarmus!"_

A flash of red light sparked at Erika's hand, and her wand went flying.

Someone stormed past Aileen. His wand was drawn, his dark green robes flashing by Aileen's eyeshot as she stood.

It was Scorpius Malfoy, his wand aimed at Erika, his scowl even nastier than hers.

"Tetchy," Scorpius sneered. "You get really antsy when someone calls you out, you know that? No wonder your parents hate you."

"Watch your tongue, Malfoy... unless you'd like me to remove it," Erika growled in response.

"Really? That would be some trick, considering you're unarmed," Scorpius replied. "I'd really like to see you try."

A small group of students appeared in the hall behind Aileen and Scorpius, and they all stopped to watch. They looked to be very interested in what was going on; it looked as though Scorpius and Erika were about to duel, but Erika no longer had her wand. So, everyone's eyes fell on Scorpius, and they were all wondering the same thing; would he attack her even though she was unarmed?

"What are you doing, Malfoy?!" James's voice shouted from the crowd. "You've got your wand drawn on a girl! A defenseless girl!"

"James, shut up!" Aileen shrieked behind her. "She's not defenseless! You don't even know what's going on!"

"And _what_ is going on?" Rose appeared at the front of the small group, trading pensive glances between Aileen, Scorpius, and Erika.

"Erika called me out because she's mad at me for telling everyone her dirty laundry," Aileen snarked smugly, pleased to see Erika's face turn even more sour. "Then Scorpius showed up and disarmed her. See? This is what happens when you let a dark witch into the school."

"Dark witch? You mean me?" Erika scoffed. "I'm surprised they let _you_ in here, with that tongue of yours."

"Tongue?" Aileen repeated.

"Yes, that _parsel_ tongue. I hear you talking to your snake at night. What's that about?" Erika challenged, smiling devilishly. "If anyone's a dark witch, it's you. What do they say about parseltongues? That they're the heir of Slytherin? Yeah, that's right. What happened the last time a parseltongue was let into the school? A monster was petrifying students, right? The monster was trying to kill everyone in the school who had dirty blood. And a mudblood died too, to beat it all."

Aileen's cheeks went red. Everyone began to give her the same suspicious looks that they'd been giving Erika ever since her secrets were revealed in front of the dueling club. Aileen didn't like this. Erika was trying to flip everyone's perspective.

"I'm not a pureblood supremacist like you are," Aileen groused.

"Like me?" Erika retorted. "What on earth do you mean, like me? What makes you think I'm a pureblood supremacist?"

"Because you refer to muggleborns as mudbloods." Aileen snarled back. " _That's_ why."

The crowd made a lot of groans and whispers of interest at hearing this. Erika frowned.

"I'm just trying to speak in a language that you'd understand," Erika replied snobbily. "Do you _really_ think that anyone believes your ridiculous rumors? You _do_ know who I am, don't you? I'm from one of the most decent and well-respected families in the wizarding world. And who are you, compared to me? I mean, really. Recycled robes, battered old thrift-shop textbooks, and it looks like you can't even afford a comb for that hair of yours. You're just a washed up peasant who got lucky enough to get a Hogwarts letter. Getting that letter was probably the biggest accomplishment of your life, and you didn't even earn it. But me? I _earned_ my place in this school, just like everyone else in my family. You're _nothing_ compared to me, you poverty-stricken parseltongue."

Aileen's mouth fell open, a barrage of hurt and enraged feelings welling up inside of her, but Scorpius fired out a response before she had the chance to.

" _You're_ a parseltongue too," Scorpius said, jabbing his wand at Erika.

The crowd swapped gasps and looks of intrigue.

Erika's eyes seemed to widen behind her navy colored bangs.

"Yeah, that's right. I heard you talking to your little pet. That night you snuck out and tried to break into the library? I was following you," Scorpius continued. "How can you demonize someone for being a parseltongue? You're not only a liar... you're a _terrible_ liar. _And_ a hypocrite. You're boasting an awful lot about your perfect little family, even though your brother and your uncle were both dark wizards. Decent? Well-respected? Hardly. The only reason anyone tolerates your stupid family is because they did such a good job of covering up the skeletons in their closet. My father told me so himself. I wouldn't be so proud of a family name that's tainted in dark magic."

"You're one to talk," Erika responded icily. "You're a Malfoy. You come from a long line of scum. You shouldn't be proud of your name either."

"I never said I was proud of it," Scorpius said, a tinge of despair in his voice. "But at least I'm not lying about my family. I'm not trying to paint them up as something better than they are."

"What's going on here?"

Professor Longbottom appeared from around the corner. He first noticed that Scorpius's wand was drawn, then spotted the burn on Erika's arm.

"Scorpius, what have you done?" Professor Longbottom demanded.

"No, he didn't do that," Aileen said. "It was me. I'm the one who burned her - but she attacked me first!"

"That's a _lie_!" Erika yelled, and Aileen resisted a powerful urge to send a second streak of fire towards her.

"Enough," Professor Longbottom cut them off. "Miss Sayre - go to the hospital wing and get that treated. Miss O'Heidin, Mr. Malfoy, both of you come to my office. Now."

Erika snatched her wand from the ground and stormed away. The crowd began to disperse as Aileen and Scorpius followed behind Professor Longbottom. When they passed the other students, Aileen was able to hear James and Fred faintly chanting in her favor; "Burn the witch! Burn the witch!"

It was a long walk to the Gryffindor's head of house's office. After climbing what must have been a thousand stairs, they finally reached the office, and it looked like any ordinary teacher's office - except that it was covered in plants. On every tabletop and growing from many glass tanks on the floor were numerous magical plants, and if Aileen wasn't imagining it, some of them were moving, and a few of them were even making groaning or squishing noises.

Aileen and Scorpius were noticeably skeptical of the plants, but Professor Longbottom calmly took a seat behind his desk and waited for the children to do the same. So, Aileen and Scorpius cautiously sat in the chairs in front of his desk, and Aileen swallowed a yelp when she felt a thin vine graze against her ankle.

"Tell me what happened," Professor Longbottom said.

Aileen and Scorpius both started to talk, stopped, started to talk again, then looked to one another.

"One at a time," Professor Longbottom told them. "Aileen, you go first."

"I was walking in the hallway, and she showed up. She threatened me," Aileen said.

"Did she really attack you first?"

"Um... well, we both kind of attacked at the same time. But she was reaching for her wand, and she threatened to hex me. I felt like I needed to defend myself."

"So you burned her?"

"Yeah, and she threw me down the hallway. Look." Aileen rolled up her sleeve and revealed a long bruise which crawled from her forearm to her elbow.

Professor Longbottom gave her a long, inquisitive stare.

"You really need to be careful," the professor said.

"I didn't do anything! She started it!" Aileen protested.

"That's not what I mean," Professor Longbottom replied. "I mean... you need to learn some less offensive spells for those situations. You need to learn to disarm and disable your opponents without doing them a lethal injury."

"What?!" Aileen gasped, her temper escalating beyond her control again. "She gave me third degree burns and landed me in the hospital wing! I'm not the one who has issues controlling my spells! _She_ is!"

"I'm not saying that she's right. Calm yourself," Professor Longbottom added. "Mr. Malfoy, you saw what happened between them, didn't you?"

"I... yes. Yes, I did," Scorpius replied.

"Is Aileen telling the truth? Did Erika threaten her?" Longbottom asked.

"Y-yes, she did, sir," Scorpius said. "I heard it myself. Erika threatened to hex her."

Aileen didn't say anything, but she felt a pinch of gratitude towards Scorpius. In reality, Scorpius hadn't arrived in the hallway yet when Erika threatened her. He hadn't shown up until after the fact. Scorpius had no way of knowing if Aileen was telling the truth or not, but he was supporting her story regardless.

"So, what happened next?" Longbottom inquired.

"I disarmed her," Scorpius informed. "Then, we all got into an argument. You showed up in the middle of that."

"I see." Professor Longbottom placed his chin on his knuckles thoughtfully. "Well... your story adds up. But there's still one thing I don't understand. Aileen, why did Erika threaten you in the first place?"

Aileen took a deep breath. She explained the entire situation; the incident in the dueling club, the copy of Mystical Magical Artifacts that Erika had stolen, and Erika's habit of sneaking out at night. She also explained her suspicions about Erika's connections with dark wizards. Professor Longbottom and Scorpius both listened with deep interest until she was finished speaking.

"So... you think that she's trying to steal the Sword of Gryffindor?" Professor Longbottom concluded. "Why would she do that?"

"You've heard about Xyler, haven't you, Professor?" Aileen said. "I think she's trying to find the sword for Xyler. I don't know why, but I think Xyler wants the sword. The Daily Prophet's been saying that he's breaking into places and looking for something, right?"

"Hm. Maybe," Professor Longbottom mumbled. "It's an interesting theory, however unlikely..."

"It's... not entirely unlikely, Professor," Scorpius said. "My father works with the Sayres. He knows everything about them. The Sayres and the Malfoys have been working closely together for a long time. Erika's brother and uncle were both dark wizards. Her uncle followed you-know-who. He was a Death Eater."

"Yes, but that has nothing to do with her. I think you're both overthinking this entire thing," Professor Longbottom told them. "Believe me, the headmaster and the other teachers are on guard for anything and everything. Nobody will get their hands on the sword, or any of the other Founder's Fortunes."

"Founder's Fortunes?" Aileen perked up. "What are the Founder's Fortunes?"

Professor Longbottom's mouth hung open. His face went pale; he seemed to realize that he said something he shouldn't have.

"That's enough," he said. "I'll let you both off with a warning this time, but I don't want to see either of you step an inch out of line again. Do I make myself clear?"

Aileen and Scorpius nodded.

Professor Longbottom escorted them both out of the office, away from the creepy plants, down a hundred staircases, and back to the wall which led to the Slytherin dungeon. He left the two of them standing in front of the stone wall, and once they were left alone, neither of them moved to go into the common room right away.

"Um... thanks," Aileen said shyly. "Thanks for backing me up."

"Don't mention it," Scorpius replied, not looking her in the eyes. "I just... wanted to help, you know?"

Aileen nodded in agreement, and she couldn't help but think that she had completely misjudged Scorpius since their first day of school. He wasn't at all the snobby, stuck-up kid that she imagined him to be.

In actuality, Erika was the one who fit that profile. Everything that Erika said to her had cut her deeply, and she could still hear that shrill, accusing voice ringing through her head. And who are you, compared to me? You're just a washed up peasant who got lucky enough to get a Hogwarts letter. You're nothing compared to me, you poverty stricken parseltongue.

Thinking of Erika's arsenal of insults, Aileen felt downhearted. She always prided herself on her ability to cast aside the judgement of her peers and elders, but for some reason, it was difficult to ignore everything that Erika had said.

Scorpius, noticing the glum expression on her face, tried to break her mind from the unpleasant thoughts.

"She's just a tool, you know," he said. "I've been to dueling sessions with her before. She brags and boasts like she's better than everyone else. You really shouldn't care what she thinks."

"I don't care what she thinks," Aileen replied too quickly. "I just want to find out what she's up to."

"Me too," Scorpius agreed. "My father doesn't believe me, but there's something wrong with her. She's not like her parents. Not at all."

Just when Aileen was about to reply, something small and furry landed on her shoulder.

It was a tiny ball of black wrapped in two silky wings. Scorpius blinked at it.

"A bat?" Scorpius said. "Where did that come from?"

"Oh!" Aileen exclaimed happily, gently removing the bat from her shoulder and cradling it like a baby. "Hi, little guy! I found this bat on the Hogwarts Express at the beginning of the school year. He curled up inside my trunk, and he got loose once we were in the school. I almost gave up on catching him again, but look, here he is! He's so cute!"

Aileen's mood elevated at once.

"You'll have to think of a name for it if you're keeping it," Scorpius said.

"I'll call him Phantom," Aileen decided. "He reminds me of a phantom, the way he comes and goes, appears and disappears."

Phantom the bat squeaked in response.

"That's a good name," Scorpius commented, stroking the bottom of the bat's chin.

They were quiet for a moment.

"So... I mean, we have the same goal in mind, don't we?" Aileen said. "Both of us. We're both going after Erika, right?"

"Yeah," Scorpius nodded.

"Well... maybe we shouldn't fight anymore," Aileen speculated. "We'd get more accomplished if we didn't butt heads, wouldn't we?"

Scorpius stared into Phantom's tiny face, pondering silently on this.

Aileen extended her free hand, hoping to get a handshake.

"Friends?" she said.

After a moment of thought, Scorpius grasped her hand, giving her a smile and a nod.

"Friends."

* * *

Leading up to Christmas Eve, Erika seemed to lose all interest in sneaking out at night.

With Aileen, Scorpius, and Allister all keeping an annoyingly close eye on Erika, she wouldn't risk getting caught again. Every night, she slept soundly in her bed, and Aileen even thought to put Ziggy on watch when she went to bed. Ziggy was meant to wake her up with a series of rapid licks to the face if Erika were to sneak out of bed in the middle of the night, but no such thing happened. Ziggy laid at the foot of Aileen's bed each night, his head aimed towards Erika's bed, his eyes fixed unwaveringly on her. Since Ziggy never spent any time in his cage, Aileen put Phantom in the cage and fed him grapes and vegetables that she'd swipe from the Great Hall during dinner. The bat feasted happily on the scavenged goods every night.

The morning of Christmas Eve, Aileen took her copy of Mystical Magical Artifacts down to the Great Hall. She stood under the gigantic tree that Hagrid had dragged to the castle, admiring the many magical decorations on it before proceeding to breakfast. The Great Hall was far emptier than usual, with many of the students having gone home for the holidays. Aileen peered up at the windows longingly for a moment, seeing a few owls squeezing inside and dropping articles of mail in front of the students down below. Minutes later, the owls were gone. None of them had brought anything for Aileen, even after weeks of waiting. How long would it take for her parents to write her back? Today was Christmas Eve. Why were they ignoring her? It wasn't like them to ignore her letters. And usually, her parents would make a big deal out of Christmas. It was strange that they weren't doing the same this year...

"What's wrong?" Albus asked her when she sat across from him and Maxwell. "You look a bit put out."

Albus and Maxwell were both reading letters from their parents. Aileen stared down at her lap.

"I haven't heard from my parents," she said. "I don't know why, but they haven't been writing me."

"R'lly?" Maxwell spoke as he chewed on a mouthful of scrambled eggs, a fork in one hand and his letter in the other. "Ma'h dad says that he's been too busy work'n wif the Ministry to visit y'r dad, so ma'h dad wouldn' know what's goin' on wif y'r parents..."

Aileen ran a thumb over the locket on her chest. For the first time since her mother had given it to her, she popped it open and turned it around, losing herself in the little family portrait inside. It was a picture of her, younger, with her mother and father standing at either side behind her, their faces portraying proud smiles, their hands on both of her shoulders...

"My parents are coming to visit today," Albus said. "My aunt and uncle, too. And my cousin, Lily."

"Dad's coming too," Maxwell beamed. "My dad and my uncle are gonna come by this afternoon."

Aileen didn't reply. She wanted to say something positive, but she wasn't sure that she could. Right now, she felt envious of both of them. Maxwell and Albus were going to see their families today, but Aileen hadn't heard from her parents at all. It wasn't fair.

Without saying goodbye, Aileen stood and walked away, forgetting to eat breakfast. She caught a glimpse of Scorpius on her way out. He was sitting alone at the end of the Slytherin table, cradling his head in his hand and reading over a letter from his father. Maybe Scorpius' family was going to come visit him, too. Maybe James, Fred, Rose, Albus, Maxwell, and Scorpius would all see their families on Christmas. How nice for them.

Aileen wandered the castle alone again, wanting to spend time with her friends, but she didn't bother trying. Soon, her friends would be swept away by their families, and she wouldn't get to say two words to any of them. Perhaps her time would be better spent speculating on Erika's motives, of investigating her interest in the Sword of Gryffindor, or perhaps learning about the Founder's Fortunes that Professor Longbottom had mentioned...

The morning bled into a beautiful winter afternoon. Around the time that Maxwell and Albus were reunited with their families, Aileen was sitting on the stone wall in the clock tower's courtyard, watching over the scenery by her lonesome. Usually, her friends were with her whenever she'd visit the courtyard. Not today. Now, her friends were spending time with their families. Professor Crowley hardly spoke to her anymore, and her parents had fallen off the face of the planet. It didn't do any good to mull over her feelings of loneliness like this. Aileen wanted to learn about Xyler, wanted to uncover Erika's secrets, wanted to find out about the Founder's Fortunes, but her mind simply wouldn't concentrate. A knot had developed in the pit of her stomach as she watched the Christmas Eve sunset on the horizon, and with no family and no friends by her side, she felt more out of place than ever before.

The longer she sat on the snowy wall, the icy fluff dampening her robes, the more she wanted to cry. Erika's insults wouldn't leave her mind, and Aileen wanted desperately to know why her parents weren't talking to her.

After a while, she was able to hear the crunching of snow behind her. It was the sound of a single set of footsteps. Someone was approaching her from behind, but she didn't bother to face them. It was probably a teacher, ready to scold her for being outside near dark...

"Something on your mind?" an unfamiliar voice asked her.

The strange adult took a seat right beside her.

Aileen turned her head and looked up at him, and her eyes immediately zeroed in on the lightning scar on the man's forehead. She was face to face with none other than Harry Potter.

"My sons told me all about you. Albus said that you were a bit put out," Harry said. "Took me a few hours to break away. They gave me the grand tour of Hogwarts, acted as if I'd never been here before."

Aileen couldn't find any words to respond with at first.

"My... my parents haven't been writing me. I don't know why," Aileen began, and suddenly, she found herself fighting down tears. "And... I dunno... maybe they're not writing me because they're disappointed in me. Maybe they're disappointed in me... because... I'm just a nobody who's lucky to be in Hogwarts... because I didn't earn my way into this school... because I'm... a Slytherin... or because I'm a parseltongue... I dunno..."

Harry raised his brows at her, then turned his gaze onto the sunset.

"I don't think that's the reason," he replied. "Slytherins have a bad reputation, but that's all it is. A reputation. The bravest man I ever knew was a Slytherin, and he was anything but a disappointment. And... I used to be a parseltongue."

"You did?" Aileen asked.

"Yes, I did. I lost that ability a long time ago. But... I remember what it's like, being the only student in school who can talk to snakes. I remember the gossip, and the mean looks, and the insults, and the accusations. It happened to me, too."

Aileen blinked at him. "I didn't say anything about insults, or..."

"You didn't have to," Harry replied solemnly. "It's written all over your face. I remember being in your shoes."

Aileen covered her face with her hands, trying with all her might to keep herself from crying.

Harry gave her a gentle pat on the back.

"We're all in the Great Hall tonight. There's a great Christmas feast going on. The house elves always cook enough for a thousand," he said. "Come inside and join us. We'd love to have you spend Christmas with us."

"I... I don't want to," Aileen murmured. "N... not yet."

"All right. Come inside whenever you're ready," Harry told her. He stood, gave her a final pat on the shoulder, and walked away.

Aileen sat alone for longer than she cared to keep track of. Nighttime fell, and the air became blisteringly cold. She wanted to join the others in the Great Hall, but she wanted even more to see her mother and father. Since Harry mentioned house elves, Aileen thought of Allister, all by himself in the Slytherin common room, cleaning the dormitories and spending his Christmas Eve working without any company or Christmas presents. Maybe she ought to visit the house elf, so that neither of them would be alone tonight. Would she be able to scrounge up a present for him at the last second? Aileen figured that Allister would be overjoyed with anything that she'd give him, even something as insignificant as a leftover steak or a rusty fork...

At last, Aileen stood, and her legs sank into the snow halfway up her shins. Before she could turn to cross the courtyard, something in the distance caught her eye. One of the many pathways leading up to Hogwarts extended out from the clock tower's courtyard, and further down the way, Aileen was able to see the shadowy shape of a man approaching from afar. It wasn't a shadowy boggart or a shapeshifting ghost. It looked to be nothing more than an ordinary man - but he had effectively captured Aileen's undivided attention. After all, she would recognize him anywhere.

A brilliant smile crept across her face as the man drew nearer.

Aileen stepped into the clearing at the edge of the courtyard, her heart filling with joy and her feelings of sadness having vanished without a trace.

As Samuel O'Heidin marched towards his daughter, he unraveled a long, beautiful, green-and-white scarf from around his neck and wrapped it around Aileen's. It was the softest, most gorgeous Slytherin scarf that Aileen had ever encountered before. It must have been her father's scarf from his school days. She'd be sure to treasure it always.

Aileen trapped him in a spine-snapping hug, and he returned the embrace. When she gazed up at him, her smile began to fade. He didn't look excited or relieved like she did. In fact, he didn't look happy at all. His eyes appeared deadened, more so than Aileen had ever seen them, and his frown had imprinted on his face in a manner that looked to be permanent. He let out a long, stressed sigh, his exhalation visible as a cloud in the freezing air.

"We need to talk, kiddo."


	12. The Mystery of Xyler

Aileen grabbed her father and encased him in another hug.

Samuel returned the embrace once again, resting his chin on her head and releasing another sigh.

"What do we need to talk about?" Aileen asked, peering up at her father innocently. "Where's Mum?"

Samuel said nothing. His slender body was wrapped in a black overcoat, but now that he had taken off his Slytherin scarf and given it to his daughter, he felt colder than before, and he'd started to shiver. His hairs were slicked back and carrying loose flakes of snow, and as he trembled in the cold, he pocketed his hands, frowned, and stared at Aileen endlessly.

"Your Mum is... sick. She came down with Dragon Pox," Samuel told her. "She... couldn't make it."

Aileen grimaced.

"Is that why you haven't been writing me back?" She asked. "You were too busy taking care of Mum? Is that it?"

Samuel slowly nodded.

"Oh, okay," Aileen said, suddenly understanding. "That's okay. She can write me back when she feels better. Can we go home and visit her?"

"No, no," Samuel replied. "We can't, kiddo. She's contagious. I got over Dragon Pox when I was a wee little thing... five or six years old, I was. But you? You've never had Dragon Pox. I wouldn't want you to catch it too. You'll have to wait until she gets better to see her."

"Oh..." Aileen mumbled. "Okay. Well... how did you get here, anyway? Nobody can apparate onto school grounds. Did you take a broom?"

"Aye. I came with Ross. Ross went to meet up with little Maxwell a while ago. I've been outside, watching the snow... thinking about..." Samuel trailed off, his eyes drifting into the night sky and twinkling in the stars' reflections. He went silent for a moment and let out a breath. "... lots of things."

Aileen peered up at her father, noticing the look of sadness on his face and wanting to comfort him somehow.

"She'll get better," Aileen told him. "People get sick all the time. It's no big deal. Mum will get better."

"Aye. I know, I know." Samuel nodded, still watching the sky as if purposely trying to keep his eyes from meeting hers.

"Daddy, guess what?" Aileen said excitedly, hoping to distract her father from his troubling thoughts. "Me and Max have made loads of friends, and I met Harry Potter! Just a few minutes ago! And there's this girl, Erika, and she sneaks out at night and causes problems and stuff - and I got her into trouble! I'm in the dueling club, right? Well, she's in the dueling club too, and we had a wicked duel! And Professor Crowley had to break us up because we were lighting everything on fire-"

"Bloody hell," Samuel cackled, revealing an amused smile. "Chip off the old block, ya' are."

"I made a giant wave of fire!" Aileen exclaimed proudly, motioning with her arms in a way that was meant to look like a great wall of flames. "It went all across the room, and I almost got her! I almost did! But Professor Crowley stopped the match before I could do it!"

"You oughta' be careful, or you might seriously hurt the little lass," Samuel said. "You shouldn't resort to fire spells unless your life is on the line, hothead."

"Fire spells are the only ones I'm good at," Aileen replied. "I can't do much else."

"Your teacher's taught you basic disarming spells, right?"

"Aye - but that's all he's taught us so far. He hasn't gotten to the offensive stuff yet."

"That makes sense, you being a first year and all."

"But that's not fair! I wanna learn how to really, properly duel!"

"All right, hothead. Listen close." Samuel sat on the stone wall, making his face level with hers. "Let me see your wand, and I'll show you a few new tricks."

Aileen pulled her wand from her sleeve and handed it over. Samuel took it, watching it closely for a moment before saying anything.

"Interesting," he muttered. "I had a wand like this, too."

"Show me some tricks!" Aileen said impatiently.

"Well," Samuel adjusted his fingers and wrist to the Sycamore. He hadn't held a wand in a long time. "How likely is it that an opponent can duel when their hands are stuck together?"

"What?" Aileen questioned.

Just then, a mob of people emerged from the opposite side of the courtyard. There were more adults than kids; Ross Connelly, Harry and Ginny Potter, Ron and Hermione Weasley, and a few unfamiliar grownups were trailing behind the children. Albus and Maxwell were wrestling over a Christmas sweater while James playfully chased Lily across the courtyard.

Samuel, spotting Ross, grinned devilishly and raised the Sycamore.

 _"Agglutino!"_

He flicked his wrist, and a white light shot from the wand's end. The spell hit Ross in the arm, and at once, the light turned into a gooey paste that seemed to magnify his two meaty hands together, locking them in place like handcuffs.

"See that?" Samuel said to Aileen. "That keeps 'em from using their wands without doing anyone any real harm."

"Oh, now you've done it, short stuff," Ross sneered, opening up both of his confined hands. _"Accio!"_

At that, Ross'ss wand zipped out of his pocket and landed in his palm.

"Evanesce!" Ross said, and the paste vanished from his wrists.

Immediately sensing that he was in trouble, Samuel jumped away and prepared himself for battle. Ross laughed, launching charms at Samuel left and right, and he was barely able to deflect them all.

"Honestly," Hermione puffed. "This is just reckless. They're both adults, and they're playing with magic in the middle of the schoolyard. And in front of their children, no less. Ron! Harry! Say something! Tell them to stop!"

Ross hit Samuel with a fingernail enlarging charm, and Samuel retorted with a runny-nose hex, which sent a flood of bogies down Ross's face and onto his thin beard. Harry and Ron looked to each other, both of them wearing the same childish smile, and they both began to chant. _"Fight! Fight! Fight!"_

Ginny laughed, but Hermione simply shook her head, staring down at her boots and mumbling something that sounded like "Some things never change..."

Everyone laughed and cheered for the two dueling fathers. This continued for several minutes before Ross finally determined that it was time to stop, due to one of Samuel's extending fingernails nearly poking Rose Weasley's eye out. Once his fingernails were returned to their original size, Samuel instructed Aileen to test the spell out on him, and after about ten minutes of practicing, she successfully managed to glue her father's hands together. Excited and downright giddy at mastering a new spell, she wrapped her arms around her father's neck just before running off with Maxwell and Albus, breathlessly yammering about visiting Allister before Christmas was over. Once the three of them were out of sight, Ross gave Samuel a serious, examining stare.

"You didn't tell her," Ross whispered, "did you?"

Samuel was smiling as he watched Aileen run away, but the grin began to fade at hearing this. He didn't look at Ross.

"I couldn't," Samuel replied in a hesitant, regretful murmur. "I couldn't bear to."

* * *

For the first time since the beginning of the year, Aileen took Maxwell and Albus into the Slytherin common room. Both of them were slightly uneasy about entering a magic stone wall which led into an underground labyrinth of dorms and beds, but Aileen had gotten used to it. They found Allister dusting the green lamps when they entered the common room, and all of them took turns handing over stolen snacks that they'd looted from the Great Hall. Allister was overjoyed to be given an armful of chicken wings, a lollipop, and three muffins. Aileen couldn't help but chuckle when Allister's slivery eyes began to tear up. The house elf placed the assorted foods on the couch and flung his arms around one of Aileen's legs, sobbing happily into her robe and trying to thank her between each crying breath.

"Who put you in charge of Slytherin's common room?" Albus asked the elf. "An innocent thing like you? I would think that they'd assign a meaner house elf to the Slytherin house. I mean, no offense, Aileen... but Slytherins can be kind of... mean. You know? How does Allister survive in here, trapped with Slytherins all day and all night?"

Aileen, remembering the numerous ways that the older Slytherins would regularly torment poor Allister, couldn't think of an answer to this question.

"Our house elf in Hufflepuff is a girl named Fluffy," Maxwell told them. "She wears fluffy scarfs all the time, so I guess that's where her name came from..."

The three of them became immersed in a deep conversation about house elves as they seated themselves around the fireplace. Aileen allowed Allister to sit snugly in her lap while he munched on his Christmas dinner, listening to the children talk and smiling from ear to ear.

After a while, the adults decided to search for their children before leaving the castle and returning home. Ginny and Hermione chit-chatted in the Great Hall alongside Maxwell's mother and uncle, while Ross, Samuel, and Harry marched off together in search of their children.

"She said she was visiting someone named Allister, right?" Ross asked Samuel. "Who is Allister?"

"Allister is the house elf that takes care of the Slytherin dormitories," Samuel replied. "She told me about him in one of her letters. They'll be in the Slytherin dormitories, probably."

Samuel took the lead, and he escorted Ross and Harry down many stairways until they finally reached the stone wall which led to Slytherin's common room.

"We haven't got the Slytherin password," Harry said.

Samuel stepped forward, placing a hand on the stone wall and whispering an incantation. _"Apertus Mea Domicillum."_

Astonishingly, the stones began to shift aside, and the entrance to the Slytherin common room opened up.

Ross and Harry both narrowed their eyes curiously at Samuel.

"What?" Samuel said. "I used to live in this ol' dungeon. There are loads of other ways to get inside if you happened to forget the password. That's the ticket to the Slytherin's dormitories. You've gotta think outside the box."

"The professors gave the Slytherin house alternative ways to get inside, then?" Harry asked.

"No, not really," Samuel answered. "I think the Slytherin house managed that on it's own. It sort of has a mind of its own, you know? The same way the entrance Ravenclaw's house bombards the students with riddles. It's a right-of-passage sort of thing. The Slytherin house wants you to invent new ways to succeed, and back when I was a student, I could never remember the bleedin' password... so, I invented a spell that I knew I wouldn't forget."

"You were a student here, were you?" Harry said. "You and I would have gone to the school around the same time, wouldn't we? I don't remember you."

"Yes, well, there were a lot of faces in Hogwarts that neither of us remember," Samuel told him. "Besides, you had a lot going on back then. Who could blame you for not remembering every student in the school?"

"Can't argue with that," Ross commented. "You and I went to school around the same time, too, Samuel... but I didn't actually meet you until I was... what... seventeen?"

"Hell if I remember," Samuel said, leaning into the open wall. "Hothead! Where ya' at? I've gotta go back home! Come and give me a hug!"

Aileen heard her father's voice and hopped off of the couch. She, Maxwell, and Albus all left the common room and hugged their fathers. They followed the adults to the Great Hall, where Albus and Maxwell said their goodbyes to their mothers and saw their families off. An older, tired looking man in a formal getup - Maxwell's uncle - bent down and instructed Maxwell to stay out of trouble before turning on his heel and marching away. Aileen was sad to see her father go, but she felt wonderful after seeing him for the first time in months. As the adults marched off, she wrapped her father's scarf more tightly around her neck, thinking of the ways she would make her father proud once the meetings of the dueling club started up again.

Professors Longbottom and Truman took turns removing the decor from the Great Hall in the days following Christmas. It wasn't long before all the students returned to Hogwarts from their homes, and classes started up once again. Everyone returned to their regular schedules, and everything was back to normal once the new year came and went.

For a few days, Professor Binns was completely absent from History of Magic. Professor Truman was excited to start her lessons on transforming moldy food into freshly cooked meals, and Professor Crowley finally began to teach the students lightly offensive spells. When the students paired off to practice their spell casting, Aileen looked to Professor Crowley for approval each time she succeeded in mastering a spell, but he didn't give her any extra praise like she hoped. He was still keeping himself distant from her, and it was beginning to bother her.

On this day, the dueling club was meant to meet up again after class hours were over. When the class was finished, everyone left to the Great Hall for supper. Aileen followed along behind Maxwell and Albus, listening while the two of them discussed the proper wand movement for the food transformation spell. Once they reached the Great Hall, Aileen stopped, her thoughts halting her to a standstill.

She'd been ignoring her task of investigating Erika, and she hadn't been reading the Daily Prophet every day to uncover more news about Xyler. Lately, she hadn't prodded at the mystery of Xyler at all. Erika was still facing torment from many of the other students - especially Fred and James - but apart from that, Aileen had accomplished nothing. She knew that she wanted to find the Sorting Hat, if not the Sword of Gryffindor itself, and she wanted to keep them both out of Erika's hands. After all, she had already tried to warn the other teachers of the imminent threat, and none of them would listen. If she didn't continue to meddle, then who would?

But still, Aileen didn't know where to start. The magical media and the Ministry of Magic hardly knew anything about Xyler, so what chance did she have of discovering new information about him? Where could she start? Perhaps she should have asked Harry Potter about his encounter with Xyler on Christmas when she had the chance...

Did she know any other Aurors? Any other dark wizard hunters that might know some inside information about the new dark wizard at large?

"Wait..." Aileen muttered to herself. "Crowley."

Indeed, Professor Crowley had claimed to be an ex-Auror when he faced the Chimera in the Forbidden Forest. Aileen wasn't sure how long ago he had retired from his Auror career, but he was her greatest chance at finding out more information about Xyler. It was the only option she could think of.

So, she spun around and made her way back to Professor Crowley's classroom. After five minutes of walking the corridors, Aileen stepped silently into the classroom's doorway. The room was empty, and on the other side underneath the stairs, she was able to see a black hunched shape hovering over an open trunk. Professor Crowley was examining something very closely, and he hadn't noticed that he was being watched.

Aileen drew closer, slowly and quietly, and she spotted a shifting shape in front of Crowley. In the open trunk, what looked like a distorted human stood before the professor; Aileen blinked several times, thinking that her eyes were playing tricks on her. The human shape appeared to be Headmaster Arius, pale-faced, open mouthed, and bleeding from several parts of his body, two puncture wounds pouring crimson liquid from his neck...

Aileen let out a loud gasp by accident.

Professor Crowley whipped around, his eyes widening as he met eyes with her. Just then, the boggart in the trunk took another shape; it morphed into Aileen, looking similarly battered and bloody with two holes in her neck, her scarf and her school robes drenched in blood.

Crowley whipped out his wand and swished it at the trunk. It slammed itself shut, trapping the boggart inside and hiding it from sight. He then turned his gaze back to Aileen, no longer looking shocked, but rather, looking pensive.

"Please," he said, "Don't sneak up on me."

"S-sorry," Aileen stuttered, still watching the trunk nervously.

"What do you need?" Professor Crowley asked. "Did you forget something?"

"No, I just... wanted to ask you something," Aileen replied. "I... wanted to ask you about... Xyler."

Professor Crowley leaned on his desk. "What about him?"

Aileen didn't ask her intended questions right away. She couldn't tear her eyes from the trunk containing the boggart, and now, a series of new questions were swarming through her mind.

"Um... Professor..." Aileen said. "Are you okay?"

"Of course. Why do you ask?" Professor Crowley answered emptily.

"Well, it's just... that boggart... is that the boggart that I found in the hallway?" Aileen asked.

Professor Crowley nodded.

"Okay... well... boggarts show what people are most afraid of, don't they?" Aileen went on. "I saw Professor Arius... bleeding... and..."

Professor Crowley swished his wand again, making the classroom doors swing shut so that nobody would overhear their conversation.

"My condition comes with certain... anxieties... and they're unavoidable, I'm afraid," he said. "Nothing much can be done about it."

There was a pause. Aileen wanted to say something, anything that might make him feel better, but nothing came to her mind.

"What did you want to ask me regarding Xyler?" Professor Crowley said.

"Oh, well..." Aileen began. "I was just wondering if... if you knew anything about him. You used to be an Auror, didn't you?"

"I did. But I don't think I should be discussing that sort of thing with a first year," Professor Crowley told her. "Is there a reason you're so interested in Xyler?"

"No, I... I'm just curious," Aileen said half-truthfully. "I know that you and the other teachers are taking good care of the school, but... I have an idea of what Xyler might be looking for. I think he's looking for the Sword of Gryffindor, but I can't figure out why. The Sword of Gryffindor is a tool for good, isn't it? It rejects dark magic, right? So, if he is looking for the sword, then why? It's not like he can use it. And-"

"Why," Crowley interrupted. "The 'why' of it is simple. The Sword of Gryffindor is one of the most powerful magical objects in the world, and it's been used to vanquish dark magic numerous times, right?"

"Y... yes," Aileen said.

"So," Professor Crowley approached her, raising his eyebrows at her. "What dark wizard would want to leave a powerful weapon of righteousness in the hands of his enemy?"

Aileen looked down at her feet, thinking on this.

"Of course," she said. "He doesn't want to _use_ the sword. He wants to take it away from anyone who might use it against him in the future!"

"Exactly," Professor Crowley replied, snapping his fingers and giving her a smile. "The first step to being a successful Auror is to think like a dark wizard, and this Xyler sounds like a tactician. He wants to disarm the good-doers of the wizarding world, little by little, before he launches whatever plans he has in store. And what's the first step in doing that? Stealing the Sword of Gryffindor. He'd be after other artifacts of considerable power as well. The remnants of the Elder Wand, perhaps, or the rest of the Founders' Fortunes..."

"What are the Founder's Fortunes?" Aileen inquired.

Professor Crowley examined her. "I'm not sure I should be telling you all this."

"I'm just curious," Aileen told him. "It's... it's just academic curiosity. I swear."

Crowley smirked. "You're a terrible liar."

Aileen chuckled.

"Well," Professor Crowley placed his hands together thoughtfully. "Do you think that Godric Gryffindor was the only Hogwarts founder who fashioned himself a special weapon? No, the Sword of Gryffindor was one of four magical artifacts that the founders of Hogwarts created."

"What are the other three?" Aileen asked.

"The other three are safe, just like the sword is," he informed. "You don't need to worry about any of them."

Aileen opened her mouth to argue, but she fell silent when an idea struck her. If she was sneaky enough, she could creep out after dark and thumb around the restricted section of the library. She could do her own research about the Founders' Fortunes if Crowley wouldn't tell her about them.

"Professor," Aileen said. "Do you believe me?"

"About what?" Crowley asked.

"About the sword being in danger. Do you believe me?" Aileen wondered.

Professor Crowley observed her very closely, his two different eyes both shining with intrigue.

"I don't think you have to worry with Arius and I guarding it," he said. "But, I will say this. I do believe that you're onto something. You're a bright student, one of the brightest I've ever taught. I don't think that you'd just dream all of this up. Arius told me everything that you said about Erika, and none of it sounded far-fetched to me."

Aileen smiled. Out of all the teachers she'd spoken to about Erika and Xyler, Professor Crowley was the only one that honestly believed her.

"You'd better get to the Great Hall if you want to eat your dinner before the dueling club this evening," Professor Crowley said. "Don't worry so much about the sword. Alright? If anything threatens the sword, then I'll deal with it myself, up close and personal. You're a first year. your job is to enjoy your life and to pass your classes. You leave the big problems to me, alright?"

Aileen smiled and nodded.

"Very well," Crowley said. "Off you go. Don't show up late to the dueling club."

Aileen turned and moved towards the doors, but just before pushing them open, she stopped and faced Crowley once more.

"Professor," she said. "Don't look at that boggart anymore."

Professor Crowley stared at her.

"I don't care that you drink blood," Aileen told him, wearing an oddly kind smile. "You're still my favorite teacher."

At that, she stepped through the doors and departed to the Great Hall.


	13. The Founders' Fortunes

"Allister?"

Aileen woke up early on the third Monday of January, and she spent her time by taking an early shower and feeding leftover muffin crumbs to Phantom. The bat jumped around its cage frantically. Aileen guessed that the bat was getting restless from being cooped up all the time, but she didn't want to let it out of its cage. It might run away again if she did. Now, she was searching around for her favorite house elf. She hadn't seen him since the day before.

" _The elf isss probably getting me a hefty feasssst_ ," Ziggy hissed.

"Yeah," Aileen told herself. "He always brings Ziggy food. That's probably where he is..."

Feeling strangely refreshed, Aileen dressed in her robes and left the dormitory. The day carried on as usual; now, Professor Crowley was talking to her regularly again, just like he used to. Her father was writing her every week, and all of her classes were going well. In the dueling club, she and Scorpius were no longer starting their duels with competitive banter. Instead, Aileen, Scorpius, Maxwell, Albus, and Rose would all meet up in one group during each meeting, swapping spell ideas and spying on Erika from afar.

"I don't understand," Rose had said when they tried to explain the situation to her. "You think Erika is working for a dark wizard? She's eleven years old. How could she possibly manage that...?"

"Who knows," Albus shrugged. "Maybe it's in her blood. I mean, Tom Riddle started his evil plans when he was still in school..."

"Yes, but I seriously doubt that Erika is going to be the next Lord Voldemort," Rose countered.

"She's not," Aileen said. "She's not the next Voldemort. She's working for the next Voldemort."

Though despite her certainty at saying this, Aileen would see no further evidence of Erika's connection with the dark side in the weeks following. When spring arrived, Aileen had yet to catch Erika sneaking out in the night again. Apart from shooting Aileen mean insults or angry looks in passing, Erika was acting as innocent as ever. At the end of March, Aileen found herself sitting on her bed in the dormitory, surrounded by parchments of unfinished homework and losing herself in thought about Xyler, unable to focus on her school work at all. She looked around, hoping to see Allister up and about, but the elf was nowhere to be seen. Allister had been missing from the dormitory a lot lately. Aileen wondered why.

Whenever she would return to the dormitory from her classes, Aileen would find a hunk of meat on her bed, and Ziggy would be feasting on it. Wherever he was, Allister wasn't missing, because he was still providing food for Ziggy every day. So then, why was he absent from the dormitories so often?

Aileen began to skim over her essay about Goblin Lore, just when a sound occurred in the distance. It sounded as though something had fallen and shattered in the common room.

"Give it to me! Now!"

"I can't! I _can't_!"

It sounded like an argument, and Aileen recognized both of the voices. She leaped out of bed and hurried over to the doorway, only to find that Allister was scrambling and darting away from Erika, holding a large book under one of his arms. When Allister skidded to a stop in front of Aileen, she examined him up and down, noticing that something was off; one of his ears was heavily bandaged, and two of his fingers were crooked and out of place. Not to mention, he seemed to have a deep cut on his cheek and a blackening bruise forming around one of his large eyes.

Aileen glared across the room at Erika furiously.

"Miss Erika hasn't hurt Allister! She hasn't!" Allister quickly explained. "Allister had to punish himself, Miss! He had to!"

"You did that to yourself?" Aileen asked. "Why?"

"Allister is disobeying Miss Erika's orders, Miss! And he is not allowed to disobey orders, Miss!" Allister squeaked. "But he had to, for your sake, Miss! Allister has been trying, trying so hard! He has been trying to get Miss Aileen a book from the restricted section! But Miss Erika kept stopping Allister! She tells Allister, you can't give her that book! She tells Allister, you need to stay out of my business! And she orders Allister to give her the book of the Founders' Fortunes, Miss! But Allister disobeyed her!"

Aileen traded eyes with Erika, who looked positively livid.

"So you've been intercepting Allister, huh?" Aileen said. "Thanks. Now I know for sure that you've got something to hide."

"Keep talking, Aileen. That's all your good for. Talking up a big game and acting like a hero," Erika spat in response. "Go ahead and read all about the Founders' Fortunes. I don't care. It's not like it'll make a difference anyway."

Then, Erika spun around and stormed out of the common room.

Allister handed the large brown book to Aileen. The cover displayed four items. On the top was a picture of the Sword of Gryffindor, but the other three items were unfamiliar to her. On the left and right sides of the cover were pictures of a beautiful shield and an elegant bow, and on the bottom were two beautiful blades with deep green handle guards carved in the shape of serpents. Aileen almost wanted to flip the book open and begin reading at once, but she stopped herself. No, she wanted to find her friends first, so that all of them could drum up conclusions together.

So, Aileen draped Ziggy around her shoulders and covered her neck with her scarf, keeping her and the snake both warm. She gave a small portion of Ziggy's leftover steak to Phantom, and the bat twittered restlessly at her.

"Sorry," Aileen said to Phantom. "I'll let you out some other time, okay?"

Phantom squawked irritably in response.

"Allister, don't hurt yourself anymore, please?" Aileen asked the elf. "Come sit on my bed. Just relax for a bit. I'll be back after a while."

Allister gratefully crawled under Aileen's blankets, and Aileen left the dormitory. She didn't find Maxwell or Albus in their usual courtyard, so, she made her way to the Great Hall and sat at the Gryffindor table, pleased to find that her friends were there as well. When Aileen arrived, she explained what little she knew about the Founders' Fortunes before opening the book. Maxwell and Albus both began to read the introduction page over each of her shoulders.

 **The Bow of Rowena Ravenclaw**

 **The Shield of Helga Hufflepuff**

 **The Blades of Salazar Slytherin**

 **The Sword of Godric Gryffindor**

 **Each item fashioned by the most skilled goblins of the age, the Founders' Fortunes remain nothing more than a myth to this day. The only solid evidence of their existence is the known whereabouts of the Sword of Godric Gryffindor. In a time of new ideas flourishing and conflicts brewing between the founders, each thought to prepare themselves for the worst - to fight against Salazar Slytherin's ideals of blood purity and to establish the Hogwarts that they all dreamed of from the very beginning.**

 **The Bow**

 **The Bow of Rowena Ravenclaw was the second of the Founders' Fortunes to be created, the Sword of Gryffindor being the first. Encrusted with the Latin phrase "In scientia et virtue" (in knowledge and virtue), The Bow of Ravenclaw is said to possess immense sacred abilities, favoring those who value perception and precision, and it is rumored that its enchanted arrows will never miss their targets - if the bow is wielded by a true Ravenclaw. Each arrowhead presents a carving of the Triple Moon Symbol, an ancient Wiccan symbol which represents the three divine powers of any goddess; creativity, intuition, and knowledge.**

 **The Shield**

 **The third of the Founders' Fortunes to be created, the Shield of Helga Hufflepuff is unique in the way that it is the only magical item crafted by the founders that is not a weapon. Helga Hufflepuff valued protection, loyalty, and love over everything else in the world, and while her fortune is one of defense, it can deal a great deal of rebound damage if wielded by a true Hufflepuff - especially if the attacker intends harm to the wielder's loved ones. It is said to be virtually unbreakable, and while many things are unknown about the Founders' Fortunes, one encounter in the 12th century by a wizard named Benjamin Clarence suggests that the shield was unknowingly passed down the Clarence wizarding family through a family owned antique shop, and the Clarence family was not aware of its importance until generations later. The center of the shield was decorated with the earth symbol (recognized universally among the wizarding community as a simple design, featuring an even-lengthed cross inside of a circle). The symbol carries the energy of Yin, the female life force of the universe, and it represents the "Mother Goddess" of earth and nature. It is possible that Helga chose this symbol because of her personal likeness to its meaning, and her protective, motherly nature.**

 **The Blades**

 **The Daggers of Salazar Slytherin are rivaled in their ruthless reputation only by the Sword of Gryffindor. In retaliation to his former friends readying themselves for battle against him, anticipating that he may return to the school to force his ideologies on Hogwarts, Salazar created his own defense against a possible wizarding war between himself and his former friends. Considering the rumored similarities to the Blades of Salazar and the Sword of Gryffindor, it is speculated that Godric and Salazar both silently shared the same anticipation, although the Blades of Salazar supposedly carry capabilities that the other Founders' Fortunes do not, such as expelling magic of its own rather than absorbing and reflecting magic from other sources. One popular rumor among wizard historians is that the daggers were the first and last wizarding weapons - apart from wands - to be forged with the heartstrings of a dragon inside, therefore granting the blades certain magical capabilities that would usually only be possible by using a wand.**

Aileen didn't bother reading on. The only article she didn't read was the one about the Sword of Gryffindor, but she'd already read plenty about that.

"Wow," Albus said. "That bow sounds pretty cool. I wish I was in Ravenclaw."

"A shield?" Maxwell uttered. "You can't do any fighting with a shield... I mean, unless you start beating people with it..."

They both looked to Aileen for her input, but she didn't speak right away. Her eyes continued to scan over the article regarding The Blades of Salazar, and a daunting thought loomed over her like a steadily growing storm cloud.

"I might've gotten it wrong," Aileen murmured gravely.

"Gotten what wrong?" Albus asked.

"Xyler," Aileen said. "He might not be looking for the Sword of Gryffindor at all. These daggers sound like they're much better suited for him to use."

"Yeah," Albus agreed. "You might be right about that..."

"Then how come Erika had a page bookmarked about the Sword of Gryffindor in that other book?" Maxwell asked as he returned to scooping up spoonfuls of mashed potatoes. "If she's looking for the daggers instead, then why was she reading about the sword?"

Yes, Aileen realized. In the book Mystical Magical Artifacts, Erika had bookmarked a page specifically covering the Sword of Gryffindor, but that book spoke nothing about the other three items. Perhaps her interest was in the sword, but it didn't stop there. Perhaps she was looking for all the Founders' Fortunes. Crowley had said that any good dark wizard would want to completely disarm his enemies before launching his final plans, and that's exactly what Xyler would accomplish in hunting all of the Founders' Fortunes. He would retrieve the bow, the shield, and the sword, keeping them out of the hands of wizardly do-gooders - and at the same time, he would be arming himself with the frighteningly powerful Daggers of Salazar Slytherin. It was the perfect plan.

"She used to talk about legends all the time," another voice joined in.

The three of them turned around to see Scorpius Malfoy standing behind them, eyeing the book.

"Erika likes legends," Scorpius said. "The Founders' Fortunes are considered legends, you see, because three of them have been missing for centuries and nobody is sure they even exist. She talked to me about them before."

"Really?" Albus replied. "What did she say?"

"Nothing much." Scorpius shrugged. "She'd ask me if I knew certain fairy tales and stories sometimes, whenever we would talk. We sort of grew up around each other. We didn't get on much, but she'd talk to me every now and then. She's always been interested in the Founders' Fortunes. Said her brother used to tell her stories about them."

"Founders' Fortunes?" Rose Weasley's voice joined the scene as she took a seat across from Aileen. "Now that's something I haven't read about in a long time."

"You know about them?" Albus asked her.

"Of course I do," Rose responded knowingly. "You're a Potter - how is it that you _don't_ know about the Founders' Fortunes?"

"Just because I'm a Potter doesn't mean I know everything," Albus groused. "You know that I don't like it when people throw that in my face."

Rose, remembering this, went silent.

"Nobody's been able to find them. They're supposedly enchanted so that nobody can find them unless they present themselves to worthy wielders," Scorpius informed. "But it's weird, thinking about it... because the Sword of Gryffindor works the same way, but it's not missing like the others are."

"Maybe there haven't been any worthy wielders for a long time," Rose proposed. "I mean, think about it. Tom Riddle might have been a worthy Slytherin, but he was a bad guy, wasn't he? Maybe even Salazar's daggers had a sense of morality, and they wouldn't appear for anyone who had evil intentions. And in the last two wizarding wars, there weren't really any overly skilled Ravenclaws or Hufflepuffs participating, so maybe that's why the bow and the shield never appeared. Or, they could have appeared and whoever got them just kept it secret. I mean, there was Cedric Diggory - he was in Hufflepuff, and he was a prodigy - but he died before the war even began. The only house that was really invested in the fight was Gryffindor, and that was mostly because Uncle Harry was a part of it."

"And Professor Longbottom," Maxwell added. "He drew the sword from the hat, too."

"Professor Longbottom..." Aileen mumbled to herself.

Then, everything clicked; Professor Longbottom had provided her with something that could help her to solve this entire problem, a simple bewitched compass that would lead her to whatever destination she wished to reach.

Aileen pulled the Guidance Compass from her pocket, staring into it like it was a priceless diamond.

"I could find them," she determined. "I could find the Founders' Fortunes with this."

"Are you sure that would work?" Scorpius asked. "I mean, that thing is sort of... simple. I'm sure the Founders' Fortunes are protected from simple magic like that."

"It's worth a try, isn't it?" Albus said. "I mean, those little Guidance Compasses haven't existed until recently, when Professor Longbottom started making them. Maybe the Founders' Fortunes aren't protected against them. How could you ward off the detection of a Guidance Compass centuries in advance before a Guidance Compass even existed?"

"There are spells that can be used to hide anything at all costs," Rose told them. "But... it's hard to say if that compass would work or not..."

"Then the only way we'll know is if we try," Aileen confirmed. "Good enough for me."

Then, Aileen spun in place and rose from her seat, following the compass' arrow out of the Great Hall. Albus and Scorpius swiftly followed her, and Maxwell did the same after grabbing a handful of small muffins from the tabletop. Rose looked like she wasn't going to move, but seconds later, she let out an annoyed sigh and decided to follow the others.

"You're really going to try to follow that compass to the Founders' Fortunes?" Rose said exasperatedly as she jogged to keep up with the group. "They've been lost for centuries, and there's no telling if that compass will lead you to them or not! And even if it does work, who knows how far away they are? They could be hidden in Antarctica for all we know!"

"Or, they could be hidden on school grounds, just like the sword," Albus told her. "They belonged to the founders of Hogwarts, which means they might not be far from Hogwarts at all."

Aileen stayed in the lead, and the five children made many sharp turns through the extensive hallways of Hogwarts, almost knocking over groups of other students a few times, though none of them slowed down. For some reason, this very moment, all of them shared the same childlike curiosity; could a simple bewitched compass really help to locate the Founders' Fortunes? And if it could, would they really be able to get the weapons to safety before being intercepted by-

"Oy!" a shrill, irritated voice called out from behind them.

Aileen, Maxwell, Albus, Scorpius, and Rose all skidded to a sudden stop. Maxwell nearly plowed into Aileen, and Scorpius tripped over the end of Rose's robe.

An angry, panting Erika stood yards behind them, her wand drawn, her hair screwed up, and her face twisted in fury. She had followed them from the Great Hall, and now that they were alone, she intended to stir up trouble.

"I know what you're up to, and it's never going to work!" Erika snarled.

"Really?" Aileen said in a challenging tone. "Is that why you're trying to stop us?"

Aileen, Albus, and Scorpius all drew their wands in unison.

Erika, skilled as she was, seemed to read the situation and determined that provoking a duel now would be unwise, as she was heavily outnumbered.

"C-come now, let's not fight," Rose said, raising her hand calmly to Erika. "There's no reason to start a fight..."

"Shut up, Weasley." Erika spat back. "This has nothing to do with you. This is between me and the meddling ginger bitch."

"Watch your mouth!" Albus hollered. "That's my friend you're talking about!"

"Is it my fault that you have lousy taste in friends, Potter?" Erika quipped in response. "You're Harry Potter's son, and you're consorting with the slummiest kind of Slytherins that Hogwarts has the misfortune of housing. Goodness, your father must be _so_ proud of you."

"Don't you _dare_ say a word against my father!" Albus ordered.

"I wasn't," Erika said nonchalantly. "I just feel sorry for him. I feel sorry for all of your families, really. You all have Aurors and Ministers as parents, and their children are nothing but a bunch of underachievers, running around and looking for imaginary legends with a dumb broken compass. I mean, really... you all are _nothing_ compared to your parents. But me? I've surpassed mine in every way possible, and I worked hard to do so."

"And I suppose that makes you better than everyone else, yeah?" Scorpius snapped.

"Of course it does," Erika told him, her cold eyes zeroing in on Aileen. "Especially you, you poor excuse for a Slytherin. All you can do is blow fire, and you can't even control it. Seriously, who invited you to Hogwarts? You don't deserve to be here. What is it that you think you're accomplishing? Investigating? Catching bad guys? Playing pretend-detective? You have no reason to do any of this childish nonsense. You're just wasting yours and everyone else's time with your speculations and your bogus theories about Xyler. You're treating an Auror's job like a make-believe game. You're not accomplishing anything. Why don't you just go home already? Nobody _wants_ you here."

Aileen frowned.

Then, something soared through the air, flying past Aileen's head and missing only by inches.

A muffin landed squarely in the middle of Erika's face, breaking into crumbs and sprinkling all over her brand new robes.

Maxwell reared back and threw all of his muffins at her until he ran out. He stomped to the front of the group, his expression no longer shy or kind, his scraggly bangs no longer hiding his shiny, dark-green eyes, which looked far angrier than usual now, burning a fiery emerald behind his rectangular glasses.

"Nobody wants YOU here!" Maxwell screamed at Erika.

Erika revealed a sneering smirk, raising her wand to Maxwell.

 _"Pertifi-"_

 _"Expelliarmus!"_

Albus shot off a disarming spell - one that his father was particularly notorious for - and Erika's wand flew from her hand.

 _"Hominem Exumai!"_ Scorpius chanted, launching a spell that hit Erika directly in the stomach and sending her flying several feet backward.

Rose drew her wand shakily, fearing that she might have to intervene, but it was Aileen who rushed to the front of the crowd next. Albus and Scorpius had both throttled and disarmed her, and now, it was Aileen's turn.

Erika lay on her back, and she made a very nimble move; she rolled to the side and dove for her wand, but Aileen shot off a bolt of red light from her Sycamore, hitting Erika's fancy wand and making it bounce off the nearest wall and fly down the hallway. Then, Aileen stepped on Erika's outstretched hand, the wand of Leviathan pulsating beneath her grip, almost as though it longed for her to strike now, while her enemy was down, while she had the chance to keep Erika from interfering with her plans... besides, she deserved it after all the terrible things she'd said to them...

"Don't," Rose Weasley said timidly from somewhere behind her. "Aileen, just... just... please don't."

Aileen pressed her foot down harder, pleased to see Erika wince in pain as her fingers became crushed under Aileen's shoe. Her breath was rapid, slicing through her grinding teeth as she held her wand at the ready, wanting more than anything to enact some kind of revenge on Erika.

Erika glared up at her, waiting for her to make a move.

Aileen returned the look of hatred, then, she turned her head, just enough to see her four comrades standing nearby. Albus, Scorpius, and Rose all had their wands lowered. Maxwell still looked furious, but he hadn't drawn his wand at all. Rose had a particularly worried look on her face, and Albus and Scorpius both appeared somewhat anxious.

"Fine," Aileen said, removing her foot from Erika's hand. "We have something more important to do."

At once, Aileen darted off, and her friends followed closely behind her. She wanted to get out of the hallway as quickly as possible; the last thing she wanted was for one of the teachers to catch them fighting again. Besides, she was on a mission to find the Founders' Fortunes, and nothing would get in the way of that.

And so, off they ran. Aileen followed the arrow on the compass around corners and through hallways until appearing in one of the courtyards outside. The arrow was swiveling around much more than usual, but it seemed to be pointing towards Hagrid's hut. Aileen and the others jogged across the grass under the night sky, wondering what, if anything, they would find tonight.

 _Take me to the Founders' Fortunes_ , Aileen thought very vividly. _Take me to the Sword of Gryffindor, or the Blades of Salazar. Take me to whichever one is closest!_

Once they were within a rock's throw of Hagrid's hut, the arrow on the compass began to jolt in all directions. Aileen walked west, then southwest, then north, then east. The compass couldn't seem to make up its mind of where it wanted to lead them.

This continued for several minutes.

Maxwell, Albus, Rose, and Scorpius all gave up on trying to follow Aileen, because now, she was basically merely walking in crooked circles.

"Why is this happening?" Aileen said, growing frustrated. "The compass isn't working anymore..."

"The Founders' Fortunes must be protected by certain spells and enchantments," Rose told her. "We aren't going to find them this way."

"Figured as much," Scorpius sighed.

"It's not _fair_!" Aileen grumped. She was counting on the compass to take her to her destination. Apart from using the Guidance Compass, she had no other way to find the Founders' Fortunes. If the compass wasn't going to work, then what on earth would?

"Aileen..." Maxwell muttered, yanking on the sleeve of her robe.

Aileen turned to him, noticing that his eyes were fixating on something in the distance.

Further down the way, part of the night sky appeared to be moving, jerking and contorting like a ghostly shadow.


	14. The Bat & The Boggart

A rising dread shot through Aileen's body.

The black figure began to conform into a humanoid shape, its searing red eyes glaring down at the children almost hungrily.

It couldn't have been the boggart, could it? The boggart was locked away in Professor Crowley's office.

All of the children raised their wands, though none of them were sure of what to do.

The dark figure lunged forward.

Aileen made a quick slashing motion with her wand, expelling a line of fire and singeing the creature's face. The dark creature flung itself to the side, twisted around, and soared towards them again. Albus and Maxwell both fired off numerous spells, but the creature was moving too fast to be struck. It circled around them and stopped in front of Rose Weasley, who stood rooted to the spot, open mouthed and horrified.

"Rose! Move!" Albus called out, but Rose couldn't seem to hear him.

The creature reached out a huge clawed hand, grabbing for Rose's hair-

 _"BOMBARDA!"_ Maxwell screamed, thrusting his wand at the creature and hitting it with a small, deafening explosion.

"The spell shook the ground and rattled the sound barrier. Rose and Scorpius, who were closest to it, fell to the ground.

The creature then focused on Maxwell. Another ghostly hand extended, this time much more quickly; it hit Maxwell forcefully in the chest, knocking him backward onto the ground. The creature drew nearer, and Aileen's body suddenly moved on its own. She stood her ground in front of Maxwell, holding the Sycamore upright with both hands in a manner that looked almost too professional for her, taking a stance and shouting out the first spell to come to her mind.

 _"INCENDIO MAXIMA!"_

A massive burst of fire swept over the creature; for a moment, it seemed to be working to ward the creature off. Aileen stepped forward once, then twice, expelling more and more power and driving the creature further away. Then, the creature rolled to the side (appearing to become airborne) and flew around the wave of flames, dodging it and hurtling towards Aileen like a ghastly cannonball.

At once, Aileen found herself trapped in a nightmare. The creature's cold, long hands had wrapped around her throat, lifting her ten feet off the ground and squeezing the life out of her. Aileen tried to scream, gaping and suffocating under the creature's grasp, but she couldn't make a sound. She tried to break free with one hand, using the other to swipe at the creature with her wand, smacking it with a few weak fireballs and doing no real damage. An overwhelming panic erupted inside her as she struggled desperately to breathe. Julie - Maxwell's pet bear cub - had galloped out from behind Hagrid's hut and bit the creature, but the ghostly phantom didn't seem to feel it. Aileen kicked and gagged, and as she did, the creature began to change shape, morphing into a more pronounced, solid entity, with skeletal hands, an empty skull for a head, and a reaper's cloak draped over its body...

"WHAT IN TH' RUDDY HELL ARE YOU DOIN' TER THEM?!"

Light and sound started to fade from Aileen's perception, but she could've sworn that she was able to hear ambient screaming from somewhere nearby, followed by fast, hard footsteps. The bellowing voice grew louder, and seconds later, the creature abruptly released her, making her fall painfully and awkwardly onto the ground.

Hagrid had thundered onto the scene, carrying an old, battered umbrella. He began swinging the umbrella wildly, hexing the creature with blinding flashes of red light.

"YOU-GOOD-FER-NOTHIN'-THING!" Hagrid fumed hoarsely. "YOU-LEAVE-THAT-POOR-GIRL-ALONE!"

Aileen wanted to move away from the danger, but she was barely conscious, and a splitting pain had erupted on the back of her head. She must've hit her head on a rock when she landed...

"Good lord!" Professor Crowley gasped, appearing across the field and darting towards them. _"Riddikulus!"_

The beaten boggart suddenly shrank down in size, almost like a balloon deflating. It let out a loud, disgusting farting noise like a whoopee cushion. Professor Crowley and Hagrid both stood with their wand and umbrella raised, expecting the boggart to spring back to life, but it didn't.

"I've never seen anyone manage a boggart like that..." Professor Crowley panted, smirking at Hagrid. "Well done."

"YOU-BLEEDIN'-IDIOT!" Hagrid hollered at Crowley. "YEH' WERE SUPPOSED TO KEEP THAT THING LOCKED UP!"

"Someone broke into my office," Professor Crowley replied. "Someone broke into my office and released the boggart from its trunk... I only just realized it an hour ago... I've been looking for it..."

"TH' KIDS WERE OUT HERE FIGHTIN' THE THING!" Hagrid yelled. "I SWEAR-TROCAR-BLIMEY-YOU OUGHTA' KEEP STRONGER LOCKS ON THEM THINGS!"

"I'm sorry..." Professor Crowley said regretfully, trading glances between Albus, Maxwell, Scorpius, and Rose. None of them were badly hurt.

Hagrid bent down and scooped Aileen off of the ground, cradling her like an infant. Aileen almost vanished from sight in his arms. She could hardly believe how much bigger he was than her. He could crush her with a single hand if he ever had a mind too, but despite that, Hagrid was her favorite person in the world right now...

Crowley and the children all looked to Hagrid.

"She's alrigh', She's alright..." Hagrid said, shaking Aileen in a way that probably felt gentle to him, but Aileen could feel a lump forming on her head, and it was bashing against his arm every time he moved. "Trocar, get tha' thing outta here, will ya?" He swatted one of his enormous hands at the motionless boggart. "Jus' get it off th' grounds. We don' need ter be keepin' that thing in the school."

"Take her to the hospital wing," Professor Crowley said.

"Nah, it's jus' a bump on the head," Hagrid replied. "I got jus' the thing for that. You lot, come with me..."

As Professor Crowley rounded up the fallen boggart, Hagrid carried Aileen over to his hut with the other students following behind him. Julie trotted along at Maxwell's heels until they reached the door. They all went inside and seated themselves at Hagrid's cluttered table. Aileen thought that Hagrid was going to lay her on a cot or on a bed, but he didn't. He sat at the head of the table, securing her in his wide lap, grabbed a jug of water, pulled an umbrella from his jacket, and performed a spell that turned the water to ice cubes.

Aileen felt a sudden rush of embarrassment. She must have looked downright pitiful to her friends now, lying limp in Hagrid's arms. Hagrid sat her upright, allowing her to sit on one of his big legs, then began to fill a bag with the ice.

"There yeh' go." Hagrid smacked the bag of ice onto the back of her head and held it in place. Aileen pretended it didn't hurt.

"Hagrid, how did that boggart get out here?" Albus asked. "How did it get out?"

"Don' rightly know," Hagrid said. "Ol' Professor Crowley says that some'un let it out of its trunk, but I don' imagine anyone could..."

"It was Erika," Aileen accused straight away.

Everyone went silent, all of them eyeballing her.

"Erika was just fighting with us in the hallway a little while ago," Scorpius said. "She wouldn't have had enough time to set the boggart free and follow us across the castle from the Great Hall, would she? Maybe it was someone else."

"Who else could it have been?" Aileen asked them.

Nobody answered.

"What're you lot on about?" Hagrid asked.

All the children exchanged wary glances, wondering if they should tell Hagrid the tale of Xyler, Erika, and the Founders' Fortunes. After a moment, Aileen decided to speak up. She explained every last detail of the situation to Hagrid. When she was done talking, she looked up to see that Hagrid had a very grim look strewn across his face.

"What's the matter, Hagrid?" Albus asked him.

"You lot, yer uh..." Hagrid started. "Uh... nuttin'. Nuttin'. Just got a bit o' de-ja-vu. You kids are meddlin' in some dangerous things. Ya' think this Xyler bloke's got a mole in the school? And yeh think it's a firs' year?"

"She's not a regular first year," Scorpius told Hagrid. "She's stronger, and meaner, and she's been trying to stop us every time we try to look into it. She's acting like she's got something to hide."

"I don't like her," Maxwell mumbled, balling his hands into fists on the tabletop.

"You should have heard some of the things she said to us, Hagrid," Albus said. "I don't think she's ever had a friend before in her life. She's really nasty."

"I don' care _how_ nasty she is. She's a firs' year," Hagrid replied. "There ain't nothing evil about any firs' years that come to Hogwarts. There ain't no Hogwarts students that start out bad. They turn bad over time."

"But she's up to something," Aileen said. "She's doing something, and it has to do with the Founders' Fortunes, and I wanted to-"

"You listen ter me, A'leen," Hagrid told her very directly, pointing one of his thick fingers at her. "Yer pickin' fights with another firs' year, and you've landed yourself in the hospital wing once already, haven't ya'? An' that boggart nearly had th' life squeezed outta ya' when I came outside. You're lookin' for trouble, and you're gettin' hurt because of it. You got no reason ter be pokin' and proddin' at things that don't involve yeh. Es'pecially when it's puttin' yer life in danger."

Aileen looked down sadly. She still wanted to argue, wanted to keep her exciting investigation going and wanted to make her point, but perhaps Hagrid was right. Perhaps he and Erika were both right. Aileen wasn't accomplishing anything, and none of it involved her. She had no personal reason for wanting to get involved with Xyler. In fact, she couldn't pinpoint why she had gotten involved at all. Was it because she wanted to stop the evil forces that were trying to steal the Founders' Fortunes? Or was it simply for the fun of it, for the thrill of playing pretend-detective like Erika had said? Maybe, in reality, she simply wasn't good enough to make a difference. Back when Harry Potter was in school, he had every reason to get involved with the threat of Voldemort returning to power; Harry Potter was the chosen one, dictated by the prophecy of a seer, and Voldemort had murdered his parents. Not to mention, Harry was a famous, noble Gryffindor. What was Aileen compared to Harry Potter? Certainly not a 'chosen one,' and certainly not recognized as a person of importance in the wizarding world. Aileen was a simple eleven year old from Ireland, whom nobody in the rest of the wizarding world had ever heard of, who had never accomplished anything in her life. There was no reason to stay involved in the pursuit of Xyler. She had no reason to - and even if she did, she wouldn't stand a chance at stopping him.

"I ain't tryin' to make yeh feel bad," Hagrid added, noticing the depressed expression on her face. "I jus' don't wanna see nuttin' bad happen to ya."

"But Hagrid, what if there _is_ something bad going on?" Albus asked.

"That girl is up to something. Definitely," Maxwell added.

"Albus Potter - yer Harry's son," Hagrid said, narrowing his eyes first at Albus, then at Maxwell. "An' you, Max, yer Ross Connelly's boy. You two were both brough' up by a couple o' the best Aurors in th' world. I figgured yeh'd know better than to go pickin' fights with summat tha's too big fer ya' ter handle. Yer daddies taught ya' both better than that."

"M-maybe we should leave it alone," Rose said. "I mean, none of us really know what's going on..."

"We know enough," Scorpius argued. "Someone has to do something."

"An' it ain't gonna be you lot," Hagrid said firmly. "You lot are gonna steer clear o' this whole thing. Ya' hear?"

All of them remained silent.

"Good," Hagrid said with a nod. "Now... who's up fer some tea?"

Hagrid brewed a fresh pot of tea for everyone. Albus and Maxwell struck up a conversation about the house elves in their different houses, and the topic of Xyler was dropped. While everyone else talked, Aileen stayed quiet. She didn't want to talk, didn't want to pretend that she hadn't just given up on doing something that was, for some unknown reason, very important to her. Hagrid was sure to send them all back to the castle before it got too late, so not to get them in trouble for keeping them out after hours.

Aileen was the last one to leave the hut. She purposefully allowed the others to go on ahead because she didn't want to talk to them.

"Oy," Hagrid said, just when Aileen was about to leave. "C'mere."

Aileen stopped in front of the door, turned, and approached Hagrid.

"I've seen a lot, yeh know..." he began. "Seen lots o' kids yer age get caught up in a big mess, and some of 'em... some of 'em didn't make it."

"Are you talking about the War for Hogwarts?" Aileen questioned.

Hagrid nodded.

"Kids yer age were caught up in it... firs' years," he said darkly. "It ain't somethin' that leaves yer mind once yeh've seen it. Albus'ss dad... Harry... he almost died back then, too. An' Dumbledore... even Dumbledore died. Was a war, yeh know? It happens. Yeh'd have liked Dumbledore. Great man, he was..."

Aileen listened, waiting for him to make a point. Hagrid seemed to be trailing off, staring into the wall behind her and appearing to be reliving something unpleasant.

"But at any rate," Hagrid continued. "I jus' don't want you lookin' for trouble when it ain't necessary. There's lots of people who ended up in the middle o' that mess, and they didn't ask for it... and they died... but there ain't no war going on now. There's no reason fer ya' to go lookin' fer something that might get ya' killed. There ain't no Vol... no you-know-who to fight. There ain't no Death Eaters. There ain't nobody tryin' to take over th' world. There's jus' you kids, and we all want yeh safe above all else. Otherwise, they died for nuttin'."

Aileen nodded in agreement, though she couldn't shake the feeling that Hagrid was wrong about at least one thing.

Someone was trying to take over the wizarding world, and they were doing it from the shadows of society. Why couldn't anyone else see it?

"Off ya' go, now. Off ya' go," Hagrid said. "Keep an' eye on Harry's boy fer me. And Keep an' eye on Max too. Eh?"

"I will," Aileen replied.

She wanted to leave, but something kept her from doing so.

Hagrid eyed her curiously. "What'sa matter?"

Aileen hesitated, her cheeks fading pink. "Th-thank you."

Hagrid gave her a broad, bearlike smile. "Wouldn' hear of it. Off ya' go, now. Off ya' go."

Aileen left the hut and strolled up to the castle by herself. She didn't know why it was so hard to say something as simple as 'thank you' to someone else, especially someone who had just saved her life, but she felt immensely better after she forced the words out. Still, it was difficult not to let the situation about Xyler bother her... or, rather, her helplessness to do anything about it...

Aileen took her time walking back to the Slytherin common room. When she finally returned to her dormitory, she knelt at her trunk and dug out an old biscuit from a week ago, which she'd been saving for Phantom. She stood upright and started to slide the biscuit into the cage, then stopped when she realized that the cage was empty. The tiny barred door of the cage was standing open, and the bat was nowhere to be seen.

Aileen stared at the empty cage for several minutes, then sat on her bedside and sighed heavily. Oh well. It was just a stray bat, wasn't it? It was probably better off flying around freely rather than being cooped up in a cage all the time. Besides, she already had a pet of her own. Ziggy the snake was slithering over her lap, and he swiftly stole the biscuit from her fingers with his forked tongue.

" _Thanksss_ ," he hissed gratefully.

Aileen didn't talk to Ziggy. She crawled under the blankets and readied herself to sleep without bothering to take her robes off. Everything Erika had said was still plaguing her mind, and the image of the boggart wouldn't leave her thoughts. Why did the boggart take such a frightening shape whenever she'd lay eyes on it? It was supposed to appear as what a person most feared... but what was that dark, haunting, ghost-like thing that it became? Each time Aileen had faced the boggart, it turned into a phantom with red eyes. Aileen didn't recall ever being particularly afraid of phantoms, or of anything with red eyes...

And just before Hagrid showed up, the boggart had changed form. It became something resembling a grim reaper. That part made sense. In that moment - when the boggart had its hands wrapped around her throat, strangling the life out of her - she was terrified of meeting death.

Periodically through the night, Aileen would jolt awake at the smallest of noises, fearing that the boggart had returned. Each time she awoke to find herself safe and sound in the dormitory, she felt incredibly foolish, and she tried to force herself to go back to sleep. Every time that she awoke from a nightmare, she became more and more certain that giving up was the best option. Aileen couldn't hold her own against a simple boggart. What chance did she have of fighting Erika, or Xyler, for that matter? From now on, she wouldn't concern herself with other people's business any longer. She'd come face to face with death enough times this school year. It wasn't worth it.

For the next few weeks, Aileen focused harder on her school work. She carried on conversations with her friends, but she never brought up the topic of Xyler. In fact, she didn't think about Xyler again until May 1st, when Maxwell's gigantic owl entered the Great Hall and dropped a new copy of the Daily Prophet on the table in front of them. Aileen, as usual, was sitting at the Gryffindor table alongside Albus and Maxwell. She wanted to focus on her dinner, but the sideways headlines of the newspaper caught her eye.

 **XYLER STRIKES AGAIN?**

Before she could read the article, Maxwell and Albus snatched up the newspaper and read segments of it aloud.

"Bewitched the shop owner with a babbling curse..." Albus mumbled.

"Killed the clerk and made off with a bunch of rare artifacts..." Maxwell uttered.

They looked to each other, then to Aileen.

Aileen gulped. She didn't want to get involved with this Xyler business anymore, but she had a feeling that Maxwell and Albus were about to drag her back into it.

"We have to do something," Albus said. "Xyler keeps hurting people."

"Aye," Maxwell agreed. "If he _is_ doing something in the school, it's gotta stop. Hogwarts might end up on the headlines next."

Aileen sighed. "I almost died. I don't want to do this anymore."

"My dad almost died like a million times," Albus told her. "Come on. You're the one who got us involved in the first place. We should do something."

"Do what?" Aileen said, growing frustrated.

Maxwell and Albus swapped eyes again.

"We should... use the compass?" Maxwell guessed.

"We've done that before and it didn't help us, remember?" Aileen argued. "We almost got eaten by a chimera."

"Maybe because we were looking for the wrong thing," Albus suggested. "We should try to find the mole inside Hogwarts, if there is one."

"I already know who it is. It's Erika," Aileen stated.

"Yeah, but... you don't know that for sure."

"And even if the compass does lead me to her, then what? It'll be another dead end. Even if she's not the mole, it won't do me any good to find this person. I won't be able to get any information out of them."

"Aileen," came Rose's voice. Aileen peered up, noticing Rose standing behind her. "If you don't think finding the mole will do any good, there is something else you could try."

"Like what?" Aileen asked.

"Well..." Rose rolled her neck, sitting beside Albus. "If there is a dark wizard in the school, and if there are any big conspiracies going on, where do you think they would do all their dirty work? Think about it. Dark magic, secrecy, looking for the Founders' Fortunes, like the Sword of Gryffindor..."

"Oh!" Albus snapped and pointed frantically at her. "The Chamber of Secrets!"

Rose gave him a nod.

"Uncle Harry pulled the sword from the hat in that very chamber," she said. "And that's where Salazar Slytherin and Lord Voldemort both did their dirty work when they were inside Hogwarts. If we're looking for something sinister inside the school... that's where we should start."

Aileen pulled out her compass, gazing into it. "We could find it..."

"I say we should try before it's too late," Scorpius intervened, appearing behind Maxwell and leaning over his shoulder, eyeing the Daily Prophet. "There's no telling what we'll find, if we find anything... but the five of us all together? We could manage."

Aileen glanced between all of them, each of them staring back at her expectantly. An uncomfortable knot formed in the pit of her stomach, making her feel terribly conflicted. No, she didn't want to come face-to-face with death again... but all of her friends were bound and determined to finish what they'd started. How could she back out now?

"All right," Aileen hesitantly decided, standing and abandoning her plate of food. "Let's go find the Chamber of Secrets."

"Brilliant," Rose beamed. "I'm glad you're on board for this. I was afraid I'd have to do all this investigating on my own. That's why I sent James on a mission for me."

Careful not to let anyone else see it, Rose gently slipped out a hunk of cloth from within her robes, an old, battered hat.

"Is that the bloody Sorting Hat?" Albus whisper-yelled.

Rose winked and stuffed it away again. "I asked James to do something bad enough to get sent to the Headmaster's office, and while he was there, he nicked it for me. He bewitched a metal suit of armor to dance in the corridors and block everyone from getting to their classes. He was delighted to do it, too. Didn't even ask what I needed the Sorting Hat for."

"Why did you take it?" Maxwell wondered.

"Well, I thought that I'd try to..." Rose started. "I mean... if I found anything leading to Xyler, I thought I might... try to call the Bow of Ravenclaw from the hat. But now, there's five of us. We'd have a bigger chance of calling one of the Founders' Fortunes with all of us here. We're all good at magic, and we're all from different houses."

"So... you want to draw the Founders' Fortunes before Xyler and his followers have a chance to?" Aileen asked.

"Yes," Rose nodded. "And I thought they might present themselves to us if we ended up in danger. Since we don't have any teachers or parents around to help us... never hurts to have a little insurance, right?"

"What're we waiting for, then?" Scorpius said. "Let's get this show on the road."

The five children left the Great Hall and began their search for the Chamber of Secrets, their hearts thumping, their minds racing.

Phantom the bat flew along behind them as they walked.


	15. Lord Xyler

The children began their search, and for nearly twenty minutes, they found nothing.

"We don't even know where to start looking..." Rose said as they walked.

Aileen was in the lead as the group wandered the halls. Soon, the students would be expected to be inside their dormitories, readying for bed. Hopefully they would find their destination before any teachers or prefects crossed paths with them. But Aileen's compass seemed to be taking them in circles and through the same hallways over and over again.

"The chamber is probably protected, just like the weapons are," Scorpius said. "That compass probably won't find the chamber."

"Then what do we do?" Albus wondered.

"Think, Albus," Rose said to her cousin. "Uncle Harry told us stories about the chamber, didn't he? You've heard a lot more of his stories than I have. Think about it. Try to remember what he told you."

"All I remember is..." Albus pondered. "... something about a bathroom."

"The Chamber of Secrets is in a lavatory?" Scorpius asked. "Really?"

"A _girl's_ lavatory," Albus replied.

"Great. That narrows it down..." Aileen said sarcastically. "We don't have time to search them all."

"I have an idea," Rose proposed. "In order to save time, we need to cover as much ground as possible, right? Well, there's five of us. If we split up, we can easily search more of the girls' lavatories tonight. If we miss any of them, and if we don't find the chamber, then we'll pick up the search again tomorrow night. How does that sound?"

"Sounds like the best plan we've got," Scorpius agreed. "But if anyone finds the chamber, we don't go inside it. Not while we're alone. Nobody goes into the chamber until we regroup, alright? It could be really dangerous in there. A monster used to live in that chamber, after all."

"We'll meet up outside of the Great Hall in about an an hour," Aileen said. "Let's do it."

So, the kids went their separate ways. Aileen began down the hallway to her left, but Rose grabbed her wrist and stopped her.

"Take this with you," she said, placing the Sorting Hat in her hand.

"Why?" Aileen asked.

"Because," Rose replied, "I've seen what you can do. You're a great witch, and if any of us is worthy to draw one of the Founders' Fortunes, you are."

"O... okay," Aileen said, though she didn't agree with Rose's synopsis at all. Aileen had an exceptionally powerful wand and a strange love of fire spells, but she wasn't particularly skilled or insightful. She was almost certain that she'd never be able to call upon one of the Founders' Fortunes.

As the students all wandered off by themselves, Aileen tried to stuff the Sorting Hat inside her robe in a way that didn't look bulgy or misshapen. Walking around the castle with the stolen Sorting Hat made her incredibly nervous, and she silently prayed that she wouldn't run into any teachers.

The longer she walked, the more she began to question herself. Why was she so quick to change her mind about getting involved with Xyler? Throughout the school year, she'd made friends, learned a variety of new spells, and met many different teachers, all with their own wonderful quirks and skills. She didn't feel all that comfortable at Hogwarts at first, but as time passed, she grew to love the place like it was home. Perhaps she simply wanted to keep her new home safe... even if it meant sticking her neck out and risking life and limb. Besides, it annoyed her that her nightmares about the boggart kept frightening her awake in the night, and that she had failed to fight it off when it attacked her. Perhaps she wanted to prove herself, to win her pride back and to make it known that she wasn't just a peasant who couldn't hold her own in battle, who didn't earn her place in Hogwarts, who didn't deserve to be here...

Aileen wanted desperately to prove Erika wrong, and tonight, she would succeed. No matter what.

Something whizzed over her head.

Aileen perked up to see Phantom the bat fluttering down the hallway. It soared around the corner, and a moment later, it reappeared, bobbing rapidly and twittering madly at her. Did it want her attention?

"Do you..." Aileen said. "... want me to follow you?"

Phantom squeaked loudly and flew around the corner again.

Aileen jogged to keep up with him. She followed the bat through three corridors and up several staircases until Phantom stopped in front of a lavatory.

"You're a mysterious little thing," Aileen said to Phantom.

Phantom bashed its little head on the doors to the bathroom. Aileen pushed them open, stepped inside, allowed Phantom to fly inside after her, and carefully closed the doors.

This lavatory was completely empty, and it looked like it hadn't been used in ages. Though, Aileen was sure that she could hear distant sobbing coming from somewhere...

"Someone there?" A crackling girl's voice came from one of the furthest stalls.

"Um," Aileen started. "Y-yeah. Who are you?"

A white, ghostly face phased through one of the stall doors. It was a mopey, teary eyed face wearing glasses.

"You don't care who I am," the ghost said. "Whatever you're here for, you're not here for me. I know nobody would waste their time on me..."

Aileen, not knowing what to say, hesitated.

"I'm looking for the Chamber of Secrets," Aileen said. "Do you know where it is?"

"Popular place now, isn't it?" the ghostly girl replied. "Used to be, nobody even thought there was a Chamber of Secrets. Now it seems like you're all trying to orchestrate some social get-together down there. What's so special about that place? Why can't anyone stop by just to visit?"

"So it _is_ in here?" Aileen determined. "Where's the entrance? And what do you mean, it's a popular place? Have there been other people going into the chamber?"

"Of _course_ there have. Don't act like you don't know," the ghost told her. "Isn't that what you're here for? You're off to meet one of your Slytherin friends down there. That girl with the dark hair. She's your friend, isn't she?"

Aileen went silent. Erika had already gone into the chamber?

"Bloody hell," Aileen swore. "She was one step ahead of us."

"She went down there a little while ago, muttering something about it being too late to find the treasures," the ghost said. "She was mumbling an awful lot about wasting the school year without having accomplished anything."

"Where did she go? Where's the entrance to the chamber?"

"In here."

"Where?"

"In _here_. It's close by. Just look around."

Aileen skimmed over everything, but the bathroom looked like any ordinary lavatory. Then, she saw Phantom standing on top of one of the sink faucets. The faucet had a small, elegant snake carving on its side. Phantom tapped his foot on the faucet as if trying to tell her something. The round, cylindrical structure which held all of the sinks... it was the only place where anything could be hidden in this room...

 _"Open,"_ Aileen said. _"Open up, chamber. Open up."_

Amazingly, it worked; the sinks began to move apart, and one of them sank entirely into the floor, revealing a great big tunnel on the other side. It was so far down, you couldn't see the bottom. Only darkness.

"Blimey," Aileen gasped. "That's... amazing."

"Well, go on then," the ghost urged. "Go and hang out with that pretty girl instead of me. That is what you came here for, isn't it?"

"No, I... I need to find my friends first," Aileen said. "I'm supposed to find my friends before I go inside..."

"You don't need more friends!" the ghost girl shrieked, suddenly sounding offended. "You know, some people don't have any friends! And I know that you'd rather hang out with that pretty Slytherin girl than me! Who would want to hang around with mopey moaning Myrtle? No one! If you don't want to be here, then just go already! Go be with the popular girl! You don't need any more friends than that!"

Aileen felt something cold brush against her back. Then, she found herself hurtling forward; Moaning Myrtle shoved her into the tunnel, and she fell, down, and down, and down. Phantom flew down the tunnel after her.

"Good riddance!" Myrtle shouted after her.

Aileen flipped over and slid down the tunnel on her back, careful not to let go of her wand or her compass while desperately trying to keep the Sorting Hat from flying out of her robes. The tunnel twisted into something like a humongous stone slide. When she reached the bottom, Aileen tripped and stumbled over a pile of bones before rolling several times and landing on a discarded patch of snake's skin.

"Ugh... you... YOU BLEEDIN' TOSSER!" Aileen screamed into the tunnel.

Aileen was just able to hear the distant laughter of Moaning Myrtle from the other side of the tunnel. She stood, dusted herself off, and purposely did not pay mind to the bones and shed snake skin which was lying all around her. She was supposed to find her friends before going into the chamber, but now, she wasn't sure if she could climb up that tunnel...

"Well, I'm already stuck in here," Aileen muttered. "I might as well just go on ahead..."

Aileen followed the chamber until she reached the great stone gateway, decorated with serpents that pointed in all directions.

 _"_ _Open."_

The serpents moved like a mechanism, and the gate slowly opened. Aileen stepped out of the rubble and into the chamber.

Phantom flew over her shoulder and fluttered down the chamber, towards the person who was standing beside the skeleton of Salazar Slytherin's dead basilisk. Aileen wasn't surprised to see Erika; her eyes were stuck on the giant skeleton for several minutes.

Phantom landed on Erika's shoulder. Erika scratched him gently on the head.

"So, he was yours?" Aileen asked. "I always thought he was a stray."

"He _is_ a stray," Erika mumbled blankly, staring down at the skeleton. "He's his own man. But he's my only family."

Phantom became airborne again, and what happened next was the last thing Aileen expected.

Phantom the bat disappeared. His black fur seemed to extend into a long, weather worn, tattered black overcoat, and a man came into being before her very eyes; he had a raggedy getup under his overcoat consisting of a heavily abused pair of muggle jeans and a filthy black tank top to match. The man had a pair of big, wild eyes, a narrow face, and a head of black, stringy hairs fashioned like a fohawk, which might have looked stylish if everything else about the man didn't look so insane. His mouth stretched across his slender face, his teeth baring madly as he gave Aileen a psychotic, wicked smile.

Aileen's mouth fell open. The bat that she had smuggled into Hogwarts was...

"An animagus," she breathed. "Who... who are you?"

"Ohhh, gimme a break!" the man shouted, jumping in place and shaking his head. "You've been stalking Rika all bloody school year, haven't you?! Come on! Piece it together already! You oughta know who I am!"

"You..." Aileen said. "You're her... her uncle?"

"Uncle Andy Sayre," Erika announced. "My only true family in the world."

"Oh, I _hate_ that name! You _know_ I hate that name, Rika!" the man cringed. "My name is Valefor. Don't call me by that filthy common muggle name."

"Sorry, Uncle."

Aileen felt a rising panic form in the pit of her stomach. She almost wanted to turn and run, but she feared that one of them might take the opportunity to curse her if she dared to turn her back to them.

"You're the... the Death Eater," Aileen uttered in astonishment.

" _Ding ding ding_! Oh, this one's bloody _brilliant_ , inn't she?" the man who called himself Valefor said mockingly, grinning sickly and approaching Aileen. "God _blind_ me, she is so ruddy stupid! She followed me right down here! Can you believe how gullible she is, Rika? Ha!"

Aileen's heart began to thrash behind her ribs. Valefor hunched over her, looking her up and down like a tiger eyeing its prey. She didn't like being so close to this man - this Death Eater. It wasn't enough that he was a known Voldemort follower and an escaped convict from Azkaban, but his mannerisms, his body language... they weren't the movements of a sane man. Valefor was as mad as a hatter from what she could tell.

"Y-you were leading me down here on purpose, then?" Aileen stuttered, trying not to sound fearful and failing.

" _Brilliant_ , you are," Valefor sneered, rolling up the sleeve of his overcoat. "Lookit here. Lookit, lookit, lookit..." He nudged his arm towards her, showing her the black tattoo that crawled up and down his skin. It was a skull with a serpent slithering out of its mouth. "This here is me, this, right here. The Dark Mark. The symbol of my Lord's presence even after death, even after defeat... even after mudbloods and blood traitors took over... and I'm a Death Eater, y'see? Yes, I ruddy well led you down here on purpose. I was a thief for my Lord, got him whatever he needed, be it information, or supplies, or people... and I'm slickery like a snake. That's what he used to say about me. Slickery like a snake. I know how to steal anything from anywhere... and how to get my hands on something that someone else has. Like, for example, that dumpy little hat you've got in your arms. D'you think it was a coincidence that Lord Xyler would be looking to steal the Founders' Fortunes, and that Lord Voldemort's greatest thief was still missing in action? Even after all these years? SLICKERY LIKE A BLOODY SNAKE I AM! _HA_!"

"I c-can't believe you... you've been here the whole time..." Aileen said. "All year..."

"Thanks to you, you lovely little idjot," Valefor smirked nastily. "Got separated from my dear Rika on the train, but I was lucky enough to find you, and you hid me from good ol' Trocar. Good Auror, he was. He knew better than to let some strange animal into Hogwarts. No telling how many unregistered animagus are running around these days. But I could count on you to smuggle me right past him."

"You really are stupid," Erika told Aileen. "I told you not to get involved. You're in over your head now."

"Of course, you sticking your ugly nose in our business _really_ mucked everything up!" Valefor snarled, lunging at Aileen so close that she was able to smell his putrid breath. "We had to meet up in the middle of that blasted forest just to keep away from your invasive nonsense! I would've thought that our little boggart was enough to sidetrack you, but _oh_ no, you just _had_ to keep causing trouble for us! I mean, honestly - why are you even trying? What have you got to do with it?!"

"You're working for Xyler," Aileen answered. "Someone has to try and stop you."

Erika and Valefor both laughed at her.

"And it's gotta be you?" Valefor cackled. "Some untalented, unimportant little kid from the boonies of Ireland? Well COME ON THEN!" He lunged at her, his nose brushing against hers. She jumped. "COME ON THEN! CUT MY THROAT! HEX ME! BURN ME WITH YOUR PATHETIC LITTLE FIRE SPELLS! STOP ME WITH YOUR ALMIGHTY STOPPING POWERS! YOU BLOODY IDIOT! YOU PITIFUL LITTLE MORON!"

His breaths heaved in and out, his exhalations smacking Aileen in the face as he glared hatefully into her.

Aileen did nothing.

"That's what I RUDDY WELL THOUGHT!" Valefor screamed. "Now... give me that! Give me the Sorting Hat!"

"No," Aileen said without thinking.

Valefor cocked an eyebrow at her. He let out a series of strange, breathless laughs.

"No? _No_? She told me 'no,' Rika. Didja hear?" He pointed at her, looking to Erika and chuckling madly. "She said 'no' to me. Oh, I'm gonna have such fun with this one. My wand is just _itching_ to let out a Cruciatus Curse."

"Lord Xyler told us not to..." Erika began, but when her uncle gave her a severe look, she stared down at her feet and went quiet.

"I'm well aware of what Lord Xyler wants," Valefor growled at Erika. "Mercy to children... mercy to everyone. Some dark wizard he is. If Lord Xyler wants the job done his way, then Lord Xyler ought to do his own dirty work. Lord Voldemort would have _never_ shown mercy to any enemy of his. Not even a child."

"Lord Xyler is better than Lord Voldemort," Erika said. "Lord Xyler is merciful. He wants what's best for wizard kind. But Lord Voldemort... he only wanted power. He-"

"DO NOT SPEAK ILL OF MY LORD!" Valefor bellowed. "DO NOT SPEAK ILL OF LORD VOLDEMORT!"

Erika went quiet.

"I'm sorry," Valefor said. He walked towards Erika and placed his hands on her cheeks. "I'm sorry, Rika. I'm sorry for yelling at you... I'm sorry... I'm sorry... don't speak ill of him... don't speak ill of him..."

Valefor rocked Erika back and forth, trapping her in a hug and cradling her head.

Aileen took a step backward _. They aren't looking. Now's my chance..._

At once, Aileen spun around and darted away as quickly as her feet would carry her, hoping to reach the gate before-

 _"Incarcerous!"_

Instantly, an assortment of ropes snapped around her body, binding her legs together and her arms against her torso. One of the ropes was tightly bound around her head, wedged in between her teeth like a gag. Valefor swished his wand, and Aileen found herself flying back across the chamber, unable to move or scream. He caught her, twirled her around, and delivered a harsh smack to her cheek before letting her fall hard on the chamber floor. Aileen fought against the ropes, but she couldn't move an inch, couldn't make a sound, and couldn't hope to reach for her wand.

"Useless-little- _thing_!" Valefor said, kicking her in the stomach twice. "I ought to dispose of you right now. Oh... but, why deny you the fun of a slow death?" He knelt, grabbed the ropes on her back, and lifted her up, giving her a long, unsettling stare. "Slice off your fingers, or twist off your finger nails, or... maybe just a good old fashion Cruciatus Curse. I'm undecided."

"I did warn you," Erika said quietly. "You brought this on yourself, Aileen."

Aileen glared at them both, wanting more than anything to scream and curse at them, but she couldn't move or speak. Her arms were clamped uncomfortably around her ribs, hugging the Sorting Hat underneath the binding ropes. The hat felt heavier than it had before. Lumpier.

"I'll cook you and eat you for dinner," Valefor said with a mad gleam in his eyes. "Lord Xyler will understand, after tonight, that mercy reaps no results. Lord Voldemort's way is the _only_ way. You will die only after you're begging for death."

Aileen's fingers carefully grasped at the rim of the Sorting Hat. She felt something cold, blunt, and thick protruding from it.

"Pity," Valefor said. "For someone with an aptitude for fire, you really are quite useless. Usually special talents like that can be used. But with you? You're as worthless and incompetent as they come. Nothing like my dear Rika. Rika, my girl. Rika, my prodigy..."

Aileen wrapped her fingers around one of the handles. She wanted to speak an incantation, but the rope in her mouth wouldn't allow her to. So, she tried with all her might to summon her power without speaking, to do what her father had done countless times before.

Just then, a fire swept over her.

Valefor leaped away.

The fire started at her feet and overcame her body. The flames didn't hurt her or damage her robes; the fire appeared for only one reason, to burn away the magical ropes that Valefor had spawned. After the ropes were burned off of her, Aileen grabbed both of the daggers from the Sorting Hat, holding them upright and preparing for whatever might happen. She didn't know how to sword fight, or even how to hold the daggers properly, but she was prepared to try regardless.

The pictures from the book didn't do the Blades of Salazar justice; the handles were beautifully carved serpents, more detailed than any of the depictions from the book, and the blades themselves shone with the intensity of a thousand diamonds. As Aileen held them upright, both of the blades became engulfed with fire. The fiery blades surged with power in a way that felt similar to the wand of Leviathan. Aileen had never felt more powerful in her life.

Valefor whipped out his wand.

"Uncle, wait!" Erika called out, stepping forward and sliding her wand from its sheath. "I'll handle her."

Valefor let out a snarling noise.

"You've not been able to handle her all year, Rika!" he spat.

"That's because we've been in school, Uncle," Erika replied. "But now... nobody's watching."

Valefor gave her a disgusting smile. "Ha! Oh, very well, then, very well..."

Erika's uncle stepped back, leaving the chamber open for the two first years to duel.

Aileen shifted one of the daggers aside and gave Erika a bow.

Erika did the same.

"The Blades of Salazar..." Erika said. "My uncle led you down here with the Sorting Hat because I was meant to draw those daggers, not you. I've underestimated you. Maybe your powers are formidable... but you're still a tactless little kid with no discipline. What good is power to someone who has no idea how to use it?"

Aileen gave her a caustic glare. "I guess it's time I learned, then."

 _"Expelliarmus!"_

WWHSH.

Erika fired off a disarming spell. Aileen swatted one of the blades through the air, deflecting the spell and making an explosion of embers and red sparks.

 _"Impedimenta!"_

Aileen slashed the second dagger. Erika's jynx hit the blade and disappeared.

Still hardly knowing what she was doing, Aileen lifted the blade in her right hand, its tip pointing towards Erika. _"Incendio!"_

A shot of fire expelled from the blade, just as it would from her wand.

 _"Protego!"_ Erika yelled, deflecting the fire.

Aileen swung both daggers, shooting fire at Erika left and right. Erika did her best to counter every blow.

"Ah!" Erika shrieked as a ball of fire singed her neck.

Aileen continued to throw a bombardment of fire at her.

 _"Bombarda!"_ Erika chanted, but she didn't aim at Aileen; her spell was aimed at the ceiling.

BANG.

As Aileen kept throwing fire from the daggers, the ceiling above her head exploded into a mess of rubble. Chunks of stone began to rain down around her. Aileen dove aside and rolled over the chamber floor, but one of the hunks of debris hit her squarely in the forehead, blurring her vision and creating a splitting pain in her skull.

Aileen couldn't see or hear Erika now, but in her disorientation, she expected that Erika would use this opportunity to catch her while her guard was down.

 _"Protego! Protego Redirect!"_ Aileen hollered, shielding herself behind the two daggers.

Just as she expected, Erika had shot a spell at her. She'd protected herself just in time; a flash of blue light hit the blades and bounced away, shooting over to one of the stone statues near the chamber's end and taking a great chunk out of it.

Her heart raced and her blood became hot, and the seconds that passed while she hid behind the daggers felt like hours. Why was she hiding? Why was she holding back? She'd spent all year trying to learn to control her fire spells, to make them less dangerous... but now, her life was on the line. Now wasn't the time to control it. Now was the time to unleash it at its very fullest.

Aileen jumped to her feet, both daggers raised, and she aimed them at Erika.

 _"INCENDIO MAXIMA!"_

Fire erupted from the daggers, but it wasn't the same as before; with her wand, she would create a wave of fire, but these daggers were more powerful. They were duel weapons, both containing dragon heartstrings, so they possessed the power of two wands. Aileen found herself struggling to remain on her feet as a vast mountain of fire bellowed from each of the daggers, hurtling towards Erika and Valefor like a missile.

Just before the fire made contact, Valefor took action. _"Accio Rika!"_

Erika zipped towards her uncle. Valefor wrapped his arm around her and raised his wand.

 _"Impervius!"_

The fire swarmed over them, narrowly missing each of their bodies. It was as if an invisible shield had protected them both from Aileen's devastating attack.

When the fire vanished, Valefor shoved Erika away and stepped forward. "How dare you! How _dare_ you try to kill my girl! My Rika! Cruci-"

 _"Stop this now, Valefor."_

A new voice entered the scene, a chilling, distorted voice that made Aileen's head throb.

The magnificent stone statue of Salazar Slytherin became everyone's focus. Erika and Valefor both slowly turned, and from the open mouth of the great statue, a man appeared, marching out from the darkness and causing the atmosphere to darken into a tense, suspenseful standoff. No one moved. No one spoke. For several minutes, Aileen, Erika, and Valefor simply stared at the man, if you could rightly call him a man.

Aileen couldn't comprehend exactly what she was seeing. It was a man, a humanoid shape which spoke, and walked, and looked around like a man... but Aileen found it hard to focus on him, to really observe him. It was as if the man was shrouded in a thick, distorting shadow, as if he was completely out of focus, as if it was impossible to look at him directly. To her, he simply looked like a mound of darkness inside of a black cloak, constantly shifting out of perception even when he was standing still, and the only thing that she was able to make out clearly were the searing red eyes underneath his hood.

Her heart skipped a beat.

This man - whatever he was - was familiar to her. She'd seen it before, when the boggart would take the shape of the thing she most feared. It was the same shadowy figure, the same cloak, and the same eyes. It was the thing she had feared all school year, from the moment she arrived at Hogwarts. It was the thing that threatened the safety and security of the wizarding world, which Harry Potter and Ross Connelly and all of Hogwarts' old students had fought so hard to secure. But this was no boggart. This was no cheap imitation of the dark wizard. This was the real deal.

"My Lord..." Valefor uttered. "How... how did you get here? Inside the school? How..."

 _"I've been here before, my friend. One doesn't simply forget the paths in and out of Hogwarts,"_ Xyler told him, and each time he spoke, Aileen's head felt like it was going to split in two. _"Amazing what you'll learn about a man's loyalties when you... sneak up on him. Slickery like a snake, indeed."_

"My Lord, I didn't mean..."

"I know very well what you mean. You have doubts, and I understand that. It's a very human thing to doubt. But... understand this." Xyler strode with ease towards Valefor, and Valefor looked like he very much wanted to back away, but he didn't. "Ruthlessness for the sake of ruthlessness is not how we are going to found the new world. Especially not towards our own wizarding kind. You were meant to confiscate whatever Founders' Fortunes you could, or the hat, if nothing else. You're not meant to dawdle inside the school and battle with eleven-year-olds."

The dark void where Xyler's face presumably was was less than an inch away from Valefor's.

 _"You'd better reconsider where your loyalties lie, Valefor,"_ Xyler said hauntingly. _"Your precious Dark Lord is a thing of the past. Our reign is a new one... and a very different one."_

"Yes, My Lord. But, the girl... she interfered with us. She..."

 _"She is a child. A talented, powerful Slytherin child."_ Xyler's red gaze moved to Aileen. _"Not something to waste on your vengeance, Valefor. The girl simply needs a purpose. A drive. She doesn't need torture at your hands. Besides... after what's happened to her mother, I would say that she'll get her purpose in life very soon. You'd be surprised how great of a motivation tragedy can be."_

Aileen didn't think she heard him right. It must have been the shaking in his distorted voice, or it could have been her imagination. He couldn't have mentioned her mother. He couldn't have. What would Xyler know about her mother...?

 _"I can see it in your eyes,"_ Xyler said, speaking only to Aileen now. _"Raw, undivided passion. That's very Gryffindor. It's curious that you were placed in Slytherin instead. Perhaps you're destined for something greater than Godric Gryffindor's tired notions of nobility and rigid versions of justice."_

"Wh-what do you know about my mother?" Aileen forced herself to ask. "What do you know about my family?"

 _"I know that your mother was very brave... and it led to her downfall,"_ Xyler told her. _"I know that your father is in absolute shambles about it, too."_

"What did you do to my mother?!" Aileen shouted.

Xyler went silent for a moment.

 _"I've done nothing,"_ he said. _"I simply know something that you don't. I keep a close eye on all wizarding families who might pose a real threat to me, you see. I see things, hear things. And I've heard tell that a particularly gifted Gryffindor witch recently died a very preventable death from Dragon Pox."_

"LIAR!" Aileen screamed, trying to hold back tears. "What do you mean, she was very brave and it led to her downfall? You make it sound like you killed her!"

Xyler went quiet again.

"Did you do it? Did you kill my mother?!" Aileen shrieked. "ANSWER ME!"

Xyler didn't reply.

Aileen took his silence as a solid confirmation of her fears. How could she have been so stupid? Her father had tried to tell her at Christmas, and she wouldn't let him get the words out. If she would have known that she would never see her mother again, Aileen would have hugged her more tightly before she left home. She wouldn't have thrown a fit about being sent away to school. She would have been a better daughter to her...

It made sense, in retrospect. Professor Crowley had said that Xyler would want to disarm his opponents, and sure, stealing the Founders' Fortunes would be a sure-fire way of doing that... but perhaps that wasn't the extent of it. Maybe he wanted to eliminate the most powerful wizards who could oppose him, starting with Melody O'Heidin. That's why he kept crossing paths with Harry Potter and Ross Connelly. He was trying to pick off the most powerful of his opposition, one by one.

 _"You will understand one day,"_ Xyler said. _"That's my final word."_

"I understand _now_!" Aileen raised the daggers, her face twisted in anger, her heart pummeling inside her chest. "I'll kill you! I'LL KILL YOU!"

Xyler waved his hand through the air. _"Sleep now. Somnum."_

Aileen instantly felt dazed like she might pass out, her eyelids growing heavy, her consciousness trying to abandon her.

Something shot past her head.

A blast of red light hit Valefor's hand, making his wand go flying.

Professors Arius and Crowley darted into the room, appearing at either side of Aileen.

Xyler seemed to morph into a shadow; his vague figure glided on the walls of the chamber. He was headed for the gate. Arius and Crowley shot spells at him, but he was too quick. Xyler reached the exit and disappeared. His shadow flew out of the gate just when Professor Longbottom entered the chamber. Longbottom ducked when he saw the shadow escape.

"What the hell was that?!" Professor Longbottom gasped.

"Alert everyone," Professor Crowley told Longbottom. "Secure the castle. Don't let that shadow escape. We have Xyler on the premises."

Valefor had turned into a bat, and he flew into the statue's mouth at once. Arius chased after him, shooting spells at the animagus as he ran. Professor Crowley yelled something, but Aileen couldn't hear him. She felt herself collapse, but instead of hitting the ground, she landed in Crowley's arms. Blood dribbled from the gash on her forehead, leaking into her eye, and everything went dark.


	16. Dawn of a New Demon

_You'll understand one day._

Aileen couldn't see anything. Her legs wobbled around as Crowley carried her away. She couldn't perceive anything, apart from the terrible lingering voice of Xyler, rattling around inside of her head and making her skull pulsate painfully.

 _You'll understand one day. Your mother was very brave, and it led to her downfall. Sleep now. Somnum._

It felt like no time had passed when she finally forced herself awake, but when she peered around, she knew that she was mistaken. Professor Crowley was sitting on Headmaster Arius's desk, holding Aileen in his arms and mumbling a healing spell. Aileen could feel the gash on her head slowly mending, her open skin reattaching in a smooth, comfortable way.

There was sunlight bleeding into the room from the headmaster's many gigantic windows. How long had she been sleeping?

"Where's Xy..." Aileen breathed, trying to sit upright. Her head was as heavy as a sack of rocks; she felt incredibly dizzy.

"Xyler got away," Professor Arius' voice spoke from across the office. "We nearly had him. You did well, all things considered. I mean, apart from entering the Chamber of Secrets by yourself. You should have alerted us to the danger."

"I tried!" Aileen retorted, jumping to her feet. "I tried to tell you! _Both_ of you!"

As her vision began to clear up, Aileen noticed that Arius and Crowley weren't the only people in the room. Harry and Ginny Potter, Ron and Hermione Weasley, Ross Connelly, and all of Aileen's friends were standing nearby. Ross's big hands were on Maxwell's shoulders, and Hermione had Rose trapped in a backwards hug, wearing a very motherly, worrisome expression on her face. Harry was holding the Sorting Hat, and Professor Arius was pacing between his bookshelf and the crowd of people in his office.

"I'm sorry," Professor Crowley said solemnly.

Aileen looked at him.

"We should have listened to you," Crowley added. "I'm sorry you ended up down there by yourself."

"Where is Erika?! And where is her uncle?!" Aileen demanded. "Don't tell me they both got away, too."

"Valefor fled the scene," Professor Arius said. "Erika has been taken to the Ministry for questioning. She tried to hold us off so her uncle could escape."

"How did you know I was down there?" Aileen asked, turning to the other children.

Maxwell and Albus were staring down at their feet. Scorpius was trying not to meet her eyes, and Rose was frowning, shaking her head and looking like she wanted to cry.

"I'm sorry," Rose said in a choking voice. "Y-you were gone too long. You didn't meet us at the Great Hall, so I figured... something bad happened... so I... I had to tell the headmaster. I'm sorry, Aileen, I'm sorry..."

"Thank you," Aileen told her. "I probably would've died if you hadn't."

Rose let out a laugh and attempted a smile. Hermione patted her on the head proudly.

"So," Harry said. "You pulled those from the hat, did you?" He pointed to the two daggers lying on the headmaster's desk.

Aileen turned to the desk. "Yeah. I mean, Valefor had a hold on me, so he might've been the one who called the blades... maybe..."

"No, no, it was you," Professor Crowley said. "You don't give yourself enough credit."

Aileen went to face the others again, and no sooner than she did, Maxwell had approached her and wrapped his arms around her. Aileen was startled by the hug, and any other time, she might've frozen up or pushed him away. But now, however, Aileen simply wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him tightly, returning the embrace in full.

"Your father will be here shortly," Ross told Aileen.

Aileen peered up at him, and instantly, she remembered what Xyler had said about her mother.

"Is my mum coming?" she asked. "Where is she?"

Ross and Harry exchanged glances.

Aileen read the displeasure off their faces.

"So she really is..." Aileen murmured. "Xyler... Xyler killed her..."

"No, Xyler didn't kill her," Ross replied. "Your mother fell ill with Dragon Pox. Samuel didn't know how to tell you, so..."

"But Xyler knew," Aileen said. "He knew... he knew about my mother. He had something to do with it. He had to..."

"Don't jump to conclusions," Arius said, his eyes lost in Dumbledore's old Pensive. "Xyler has done a lot of traveling in the past couple of years. He's bound to know a lot about every wizarding family out there. Especially if he has people like Valefor hiding in the shadows and gathering information."

"Mrs. O'Heidin is dead?" Maxwell asked sadly.

Ross gave his son a grim nod.

"It's unusual for Dragon Pox to take lives these days," Arius commented. "And even more unusual for cases to pop up in places like Ireland. Usually they pop up in or near dragon breeding areas."

Aileen took hold of her locket, opening it and staring down at the tiny picture of her family. Samuel and Melody smiled up at her. Her father's picture gave her a thumbs up, and her mother was mouthing something, which looked like "I love you," but Aileen couldn't hear her voice. She wanted to cry, wanted to feel saddened by the loss of her mother, but she couldn't. It couldn't have been real. She didn't see her mother die. Aileen was still in Hogwarts, and she felt as though when she'd get home to the O'Heidin Carnival, she would walk into her home and be greeted by her mother, like she always was. Melody and Samuel had been around her entire life. How could her mother be gone? How could she expect to go home and find that one of her parents was suddenly gone from her life, that her mother wouldn't be greeting her with warm hugs and fresh Shepherd's Pie? It didn't seem real. Perhaps everyone was lying to her. Perhaps, when she went home, she would find her mother standing in front of the stove or tending to the garden like always...

Just then, the stone staircase at the entrance of the office moved. It circled around slowly, bringing someone up to the tower, and seconds later, the doors to the headmaster's office opened, and Samuel O'Heidin stepped inside, his face gaunt and his eyes void of light.

Aileen and Samuel met eyes, and a short silence fell.

Draco Malfoy followed closely behind Samuel, motioning for Scorpius to come to his side. Scorpius joined by his father.

"So, what's happened here?" Draco asked, looking between everyone. "Why have I been called from work?"

"Because, these children have made a rather large discovery in our school," Headmaster Arius explained. "Your son was involved. Apparently, Valefor has finally resurfaced from his life off the radar, and he assisted his niece in working as a spy inside of Hogwarts' walls. Somehow, Xyler was able to breach our security as well."

Arius continued explaining the situation to Draco, but Aileen wasn't listening. She was watching her father very closely.

Samuel sighed.

"I'm sorry," he said to Aileen once the others finished speaking. "I'm sorry..."

Aileen snapped her arms around him, and he hugged her tightly. The two didn't separate for several minutes.

Then, Samuel knelt in front of her, clasping her shoulders and giving her a weak smile.

"I'm proud of you," he said, his gaze drifting over to the desk where the Blades of Salazar sat. "I'm so, _so_... proud of you."

Aileen might have exploded into tears if everyone else wasn't watching her. It was hard to believe that her mother was gone, but seeing the broken expression on her father's face, and hearing the crack in his voice... it was all the proof she needed. It was beginning to sink in now, that her mother was gone, that her father was heartbroken...

"We... we never found the sword," Maxwell realized. "The Sword of Gryffindor... or the Shield of Hufflepuff, or..."

"I think you've done very well, all things considered," Professor Arius told him. "All of you have. You've called forth the Blades of Salazar, weapons thought to be a mere myth until now. That was the greatest thing you could have done."

"What do you mean?" Maxwell wondered.

"Well, think about it," Professor Arius said. "Which of the four Founders' Fortunes would have been the most useful to a dark wizard like Xyler? Certainly not the Sword of Gryffindor, and certainly not the Shield of Hufflepuff or the Bow of Ravenclaw. Those three weapons are called upon by a person who truly belongs to each respective house, a person who is honor bound, or loyal, or has a sense of righteous logic. Yes?"

Maxwell slowly nodded, only halfway understanding.

"So, you children have succeeded in claiming the one fortune that would have been the most devastating in Xyler's hands," Arius told them. "Dark wizards tend to hail Slytherin, so, it makes sense that the Blades of Salazar would have been nearly unstoppable in his hands. Thanks to all of you, we've eliminated that possibility. Now, we just need to think of a safe place to keep them. The Blades of Salazar ought to be kept by a true Slytherin, so, that takes me out of the equation. If one of the Founders' Fortunes is owned by someone worthy of it, it's less likely to be called upon by another Slytherin. It would be safest from Xyler in a Slytherin's hands. Trocar, would you...?"

"No, I'm not keeping them," Professor Crowley refused, shaking his head. "The only secure place I have at my disposal is my classroom, and I'd rather not keep those blades near the students if I can help it. Especially not after what's happened here. Our enemies know that Hogwarts is the first place to look for the Founders' Fortunes. We need to keep them as far away from the school as possible... they'd be in immediate danger in the unfortunate event that our security is breached again."

"We won't allow that to happen again," Arius told him. "But... perhaps you're right. The school is the first place that Xyler's followers would suspect. We need somewhere far from the school, somewhere unthinkable... secluded..."

"Samuel," Ross said, turning to Aileen's father. "Your carnival."

Samuel blinked. "What about it?"

"I mean, you're a pretty gifted Slytherin, and your carnival is fairly secluded from the wizarding world," Ross told him. "You and Aileen ought to take the blades home with you. You could keep them safe while she's in school. No one would ever find them there. No one would suspect an isolated carnival near the seaside of Ireland."

"And since Aileen was the one to call upon the blades, they'd be less likely to be summoned from her home," Arius added. "That's a good idea."

"The carnival is a tourist spot for muggles. It's a muggle landmark, hardly heard of in the wizarding community," Ross told everyone. "It's the perfect hiding spot. Not to mention, Samuel can defend the blades if it ever comes to that. His offensive magical skills are something to behold. You should see his shows."

"You perform magic in front of muggles for a living?" Hermione asked, focusing on Samuel. "That's illegal."

"It's only illegal if it's recognized as real magic," Samuel replied with a smirk.

"We could have done more..." Albus mumbled.

Everyone focused on him. Harry crouched in front of his son, giving him a surveying stare.

"We didn't do enough," Albus said glumly. "Aileen ended up down there by herself, and we didn't..."

"You did everything you could," Harry assured him, opening Albus's hands and placing the Sorting Hat in his grasp.

Albus'ss hands tightened around the ancient cloth of the Sorting Hat. He glared at it, looking incredibly disappointed.

"I really wanted to find the sword," Albus said. "I bet James could have found it..."

"You're being too hard on yourself," Harry told him. "I'm glad you didn't end up in the chamber. I don't want you in danger."

"But you went to the chamber when you were my age," Albus argued. "And you pulled the sword from the hat. But I... I couldn't do anything."

"Son," Harry said, watching the Sorting Hat closely, but Albus continued his rant.

"Everyone expects me to be as good as you, Dad, but I'm not. James is, but I'm not. I should have done more. I should have tried harder."

"Son..."

"I couldn't do anything in the end. How am I supposed to live up to your name?"

"Son..."

"If Xyler gets a hold of that sword, he might try and destroy it. That's what I was worried about. I wanted to-"

"Son, look down."

Albus gave his father a confused look, then glimpsed down at the Sorting Hat, noticing something hard and shiny protruding from it. It was a handle, a very shiny one, encrusted with rubies...

Albus slowly pulled the item from the hat, and his mouth fell open. He held the Sword of Gryffindor up high for everyone to see.

Harry grinned at him.

"Blimey, kid," Ron said. "You're a chip off the old block."

"But... how...?" Albus stuttered. "How did I...?"

"Because you're a true Gryffindor," Harry told him. "A true Gryffindor would want to protect the sword from evil. The sword must feel safe in your hands, son. Now, I don't want to hear any more self-doubt from you, alright?"

Albus smiled and nodded.

As Professors Arius and Crowley began discussing ways to tighten the school's security, Rose and Maxwell took turns trying to pull things from the Sorting Hat, but neither of them succeeded. Aileen approached the headmaster's desk, marveling at the beauty of the Blades of Salazar and wondering how they had survived her fiery spells without leaving behind even the smallest singe mark. If her mother was here, she might have been proud, but Aileen would never know.

Samuel placed a hand on her back, stroking her lightly.

"We'll be okay," he said in a soft, comforting voice. "We'll be okay."

Just then, Zeus jumped on top of the desk, squeaking at Aileen and demanding some attention.

Aileen gently patted Zeus on the head.

"Uh, Professor?" Hermione said, spotting the small dragon and looking perplexed. "It's illegal to have a dragon on school grounds."

Professor Arius spun around and gawked at her in an almost childishly surprised way, almost as if he wouldn't have expected the Minister for Magic to comment on such a big law being broken. What he said next would be the only thing to make Aileen laugh for many weeks to come.

"Um... I have a permit for that."

* * *

What remained of their time at Hogwarts was quite dull.

Erika never returned to school, and the others took their final exams the week before the Hogwarts Express arrived to take them home. The dueling club stopped meeting up a few weeks before the year's end, making the rest of their time at Hogwarts even more boring. Maxwell and Albus spent each day trading ideas about where the remaining Founders' Fortunes could be, but Aileen didn't care. She wanted the school year to be over, so she could finally go home and see for herself that her mother was gone. Sitting in school every day made her feel like her mother was still alive, still waiting at home for her to finish her first year, and she hated it. Aileen wanted the confirmation of her mother's death to be over with. She didn't want to imagine that her mother was still alive, to wake up in the dormitory every day, thinking that her parents were thinking of her or writing to her.

Arius, Crowley, and Longbottom worked together to apply extra security spells to the school grounds before they allowed school to continue, and the days dragged on from there. On the last day of school, Aileen stood over her packed trunk in the dormitory, staring blankly into the empty cage beside her bed. It was originally her pet snake's cage, but Ziggy had gotten so big, he wouldn't fit into it now even if she tried to squeeze him in. This was the cage where she kept that stray bat, the bat that turned out to be Valefor in disguise.

After Allister gave her a frantic and repetitive series of hugs, thoroughly soaking her robe in his tears, Aileen left the dormitory and went with the other students to the station, preparing to ride the train back to London. Before she boarded the train, she was sure to veer off the platform and stroll over the grass, marching towards the Black Lake. Aileen lifted the cage and threw it with all her might, watching it land in the water with a loud sploosh.

"My dad says that you guys can come and visit," Albus said once they were all on the train. "We all go to the Burrow a lot during the summer. My dad said that the Weasleys won't mind more visitors. They always cook enough for ten extra people."

"Food?" Maxwell said, perking up. "Oh... I'd love to come over. I like food."

"What about you, Aileen?" Albus asked.

"Yeah," Aileen replied emptily. "I'll come visit if my dad lets me."

"My dad hung the sword over his bed," Albus told them. "I haven't seen it on our wall yet, but I bet it looks cool."

"My dad has a hunted stag's head over his bed," Maxwell said. "My mom hunts a lot."

The two of them continued talking as they made their way to their seats. Aileen hung back, crossing her arms on one of the open windows and observing Hogwarts. Many of the students outside were still boarding. She would have time to put her trunk away and claim her seat before the train became too crowded.

Her gaze moved down, and she spotted Hagrid standing just below her vision, though he was almost level with her, standing a good five feet taller than everyone else.

Hagrid smiled up at her, giving her a wave.

Aileen returned the smile, saluting with two fingers.

"I swear, that headmaster has no idea what he's doing..." Aileen heard one of the students say as they shuffled past her. "He's nothing compared to Dumbledore or McGonagall. The guy was in the school - yes, he was actually in the school. I swear, could you imagine Dumbledore letting Xyler into the school? This new guy is gonna get us all killed."

Aileen almost yelled at the gossipers in protest, but decided not to. There was no reason to start a fight right now. Professor Arius was eccentric and weird, and he was most assuredly a fraction of Dumbledore's age - back when Dumbledore was headmaster - but Aileen didn't think him incompetent. He and the others did everything in their power to ward off the threat. But even Professor Dumbledore needed help from his students occasionally. If that wasn't the case, then Harry Potter would have never accomplished everything he had.

Aileen took her seat across from Maxwell and Albus, and she was quiet the entire train ride.

When the Hogwarts Express reached London, everyone took their belongings off the train and crossed the border from the platform, arriving in the muggle train station. Ross was waiting to transport her to her father's carnival before taking Maxwell home. They said their goodbyes to Albus, and Ross took each of them by the hand.

 _Crack._

The three of them appeared on the hill overlooking the O'Heidin Carnival. Aileen shook off the sudden dizziness and found her footing.

"We'll be back soon," Maxwell told her. "I'm coming back to the carnival before we go back to school. I'll try and bring Albus with me, okay?"

"Okay," Aileen said. "See you around, Maxwell."

Ross and Maxwell both waved, and then, another loud crack occurred. The two of them vanished.

Aileen stood by herself, watching over the carnival and observing the beautiful lights. She'd missed the flashing lights and the ambient music that would echo from the carnival. Before she went to school, she was perfectly content living in the carnival, never having the notion to leave, never wanting to travel. Now, Aileen couldn't imagine feeling that way, and she couldn't wait until her second year at Hogwarts.

Eventually, she began walking toward her home. Aileen stepped inside to find that her home was empty. No one was cooking dinner, and no one was cleaning. It felt much less alive than it used to. Above the fireplace, Samuel had placed the Blades of Salazar in a crossed position on the wall, but apart from that - as well as the absence of Melody O'Heidin - nothing else in the house had changed. Her parents' laundry was still strewn loosely about on the furniture near their bed, and the home still smelled of fabric and baked goods. But even though everything looked the same, it didn't feel the same. It was quieter. Stiller.

Aileen, figuring that her father was busy at the carnival, dropped her trunk at her bedside, then removed Ziggy from her shoulders and allowed him to slither onto her bed. When she was finished, she stepped outside, taking in the fresh Ireland air, which became moist in her throat. It would rain soon, judging by the sweet smell in the air and the dark bluish clouds forming in the sky.

Her eyes wandered over the landscape until she found what she was looking for. Only a short distance from her family's storage cellar, Aileen spotted a small, lone grave, the dirt in front of it softer than the rest, the grass shorter and browner than everywhere else.

Aileen slowly approached it, kneeling in front of it and reading the inscriptions without accidently sinking her knees into the spot where her mother was buried.

 **Here lies Melody O'Heidin**

 **The most gifted witch in Ireland,**

 **She stole my heart one day**

 **Nary a finer lass I'd seen,**

 **She swept my problems away.**

 **Her love like a gem**

 **Priceless and without end,**

 **The world suffers without her**

 **My love, my family, my friend.**

She reread her father's short poem at least five times over. There was no telling how much time had passed as she sat here, hunched at the gravestone, reading and rereading the poem until it sank into her head, and she could have recited it perfectly without looking at it. The stone and its inscriptions were the first definitive proof of her mother's death that she'd seen, and the more she read it, the more blurry her vision became. Her eyes filled with tears, and she clutched her locket tightly against her chest. Before she knew it, she was sobbing over her mother's grave.

The longer she cried, the more certain of her suspicions she became.

 _Your mother was very brave, and it led to her downfall._

Xyler's voice echoed within the confines of her skull, seeping into her brain and making her sadness warp into anger.

 _After what's happened to her mother, I would say that she'll get her purpose in life very soon. You'd be surprised at how great of a motivation tragedy can be._

What did he know about her mother? Why did he talk about her mother's death that way? Your mother was very brave, and it led to her downfall? That didn't sound like a death resulting from Dragon Pox. Perhaps Melody had a run-in with Xyler, and Xyler killed her, and perhaps he found a way to cover up her death, making it look like a death from an illness. Or, perhaps Xyler was the one who infected her with Dragon Pox. Professor Arius had said that cases of Dragon Pox were rare in this part of the world, and death by Dragon Pox was even rarer. Whatever had happened, it had something to do with Xyler. Aileen was certain of it.

It began to sprinkle, and in no time, the light drizzle grew into a steady rainfall.

Aileen was drenched, but she didn't move. She merely sat on her knees before the grave, crying and repeatedly wiping her eyes.

In her mind, she could see her mother's face as clear as day; her wide smile, her beautiful auburn curls, her perfect hips, and her white apron which was stained with tiny smudges of coffee. She'd wear that apron every time she cooked, and she'd always be wearing it whenever Aileen would come inside for dinner. Now, she would never be greeted by that sight again, never be welcomed home with a hug and a hot meal, never be told "I love you" by the woman who had given birth to her...

Why did she have to act like such a brat before leaving for school? Why did she have to give her mother a hard time on a regular basis? Aileen would never have the chance to make up for it. She would never be able to apologize, to assure her mother that she loved her very much...

"I'm sorry..." Aileen choked out between sobs. "I'm sorry, Mum, I'm sorry..."

The sun began to set, but the storm did not let up. The sky filled with lightning, and the ground shook with each rumble of thunder.

Still, Aileen didn't go inside.

Furious, confused, and still unable to stop crying, she slipped out her Sycamore and gripped it tight, though she had no reason to. It was as if she was preparing for battle, for an oncoming storm even bigger than the one shaking the earth with thunder right now. If Xyler was right about anything, it was this; her mother's death certainly had given her purpose. Never again would she question herself whenever she'd meddle with entities like Xyler. Never again would she pursue a dark wizard on a whim, just for the thrill of it.

From here on, she would have a _real_ reason to hunt Xyler.


End file.
